Jamie Carragher admits he is unsure how Brendan Rodgers will fit Mamadou Sakho into his first-choice XI but expects the Frenchman to be a regular starter.
The 23-year-old is yet to make an appearance for the Reds after completing an £18m move to Anfield from Ligue 1 winners Paris Saint-Germain on deadline day.
The left-footed France international arrives on Merseyside with a burgeoning reputation despite finding himself behind Alex and Thiago Silva in the pecking order at PSG last season.
Carragher, who formed centre-half partnerships with Daniel Agger, Sami Hyypia and Martin Skrtel at Liverpool, is unsure whether Sakho could line up alongside the club’s vice-captain, who is also a left-sided centre-half.
“It has been good to see Liverpool replace the old man who pottered away in retirement last May with three central defenders,” Carragher wrote in his Daily Mail column.
“Kolo Toure has settled well and made a bright start, Tiago Ilori has been brought from Sporting Lisbon for the future and then there is Mamadou Sakho.
“He arrives on Merseyside with a solid reputation and it was interesting to hear that Ian Ayre, Liverpool’s managing director, described him as ‘a marquee signing’ — when you spend £18million on someone, you would expect they will play.
“So it will be fascinating to see how Brendan fits Sakho in. He is a left-sided central defender but Liverpool already has a very good one of those in Daniel Agger, who has succeeded me as vice-captain.”
He added: “In my experience, you can play two right-footed central defenders as a partnership — that was the case when Sami Hyypia and I played alongside each other — but I have never seen a team line up with two left-footed central defenders as a partnership.
“I would doubt that Brendan is now going to start playing 3-5-2, even though he used it at fleeting times last season, so where Sakho fits in remains to be seen. One thing that is not in doubt, however, is the start Liverpool have made to the season.
“Nobody will be getting carried away by three consecutive wins but the positive thing is that Liverpool has laid solid foundations — and three clean sheets show they are going to be difficult to beat.”
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