Liverpool left-back Andy Robertson has confessed that he hasn't had a tougher battle this season than when he was matched up against Wolverhampton Wanderers forward Adama Traoré.
Jürgen Klopp's side won both of their meetings with Wolves this season, but they really had to work to come out on top in their trip to Molineux in January. Liverpool's unbeaten run came under real threat, and they only emerged victorious thanks to an 84th-minute strike from Roberto Firmino.
Wolves pull level and it's that man Raul Jimenez again! His 20th of the season!
— ?? Ja! Watch the Bundesliga live on BT Sport?? (@btsportfootball) January 23, 2020
Superb play to create the chance, and a brilliant header to finish it off ? pic.twitter.com/HNjCF1PArU
Traoré's famous pace and dribbling were on show throughout, and it was his cross which created Raúl Jiménez's equaliser. Speaking on That Peter Crouch Podcast, Robertson admitted that Traoré completely overwhelmed him during the game.
"Traoré, to be fair, ripped me apart this season," he began. "He’s ridiculous. Without a doubt [he’s the fastest in the league].
"I think he could give most Premier League defenders a 15-yard start and he’d still win the race. [Virgil van Dijk] and him had a great race but Virg has got big long legs."
Crouch clearly sympathised with Robertson's struggles, adding: "He’s ridiculous. He does it in bursts. I watch him just walking around for a little bit and I think he’s not having much of an impact on the game here, they’ve got to get him off.
"Then he’ll just burn it to the line and I think ‘how can you cope with that? There’s no defending against it."
Nowadays, as part of one of the meanest defences around, Robertson doesn't got bested too often. However, that wasn't always the situation when he was a youngster coming through at Hull City, as the Scot admitted a meeting with former Chelsea superstar Eden Hazard left him rattled.
"When I was at Hull I played against Hazard. He’d just won Player of the Year and he ripped me apart at Stamford Bridge," he explained. "It was a game I never thought I’d recover from."
In Robertson's defence, he won't be the only player to say this kind of thing about Traoré and Hazard. Both players have made a career out of tormenting defenders, and long may it continue. There's nothing better than seeing a defender get sent for a hot dog.
Source : 90min