Gibbs-White would have been I’m for a real good scoring opportunity if not possible goal if it hadn’t been for Kabak reading the danger after Phillips made a mistake. That’s from within the last 5 minutes of our last match. Trust me I’m very happy with Phillips he’s doing far more than we could have ever hoped from him but he’s really not doing as well as is being made out. If it was Gomez, Matip or someone more established putting in these performances we’d be groaning. Lovren got slaughtered for this kind of thing even though most of his game was far better than what Phillips is doing.
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Given both the centre halves have been thrown in the deep end they have done pretty well as a pairing.
Nat might be a bit limited but he is getting the job done.
Kabak,as has been pointed out,new club,new country ,new language,think he is settling in quite well and like Nat,doing what is required.
Full marks to both of them!
And the bonus of allowing Fab to play in his favoured position.
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At the age of 20 to come into a team in complete and utter disrepair, playing in one of the fastest and unforgiving leagues in Europe, to be a big part of 3 clean sheets in a row is pretty staggering.
He’s also not playing his natural game, he’s sweeping up behind Phillips whereas usually he is a front foot defender.
Pretty remarkable, if he continues this form £19mil is an utter steal.
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Serious question.
Why do you play our players off against each other and play this underdog card ‘no one can see what I can see’ card?
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If I do that I’m sorry its not intentional. I think partly its a result of others (maybe unintentionally) doing it first? So much talk about how wonderful Phillips is gets me defensive on behalf of Kabak who is doing better. So I’ve reacted. For context though I love how well Phillips is doing for us I think it’s an amazing story and achievement. I just don’t get how Kabak (who in my opinion faced worse circumstances and is doing better) is getting completely ignored.
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And that’s definitely unintentional I’ve explained on these boards many times how I see myself as a footballing idiot who does know that much. Maybe I’m just too forceful on the stuff I do know and have confidence in?
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To suggest that Kabak is holding the defence together despite of Nat is well over the top. A center-back pairing is a partnership. Two clean sheets in a row against teams like Leipzig and Wolves suggests that they both must do something right.
By the way, Carragher showed after the game how Kabak was caught out several times in the game yesterday, and Nat was there to save his ass. The inverse was also true.
Not saying at all that Kabak didn’t do well, but it’s a complete misrepresentation of the truth to paint Kabak as the one carrying the defence.
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Unfortunate ( or fortunately) for Kabak he doesn’t have the luxuary of time.
He won the lotto really by getting his shot here. He had no real right to expect the opportunity to lead the LFC defence after the half season his club had in Germany.
I’m not slagging the guy, but this is no ordinary transfer, he’s on a loan, the best defender in the world is coming back, followed closely by 2 other top class premier league proven defenders, he’s got 3 months to convince klopp he’s worth the gamble.
The difference between him and Nat is that Nat is a full in playing his role, he and everyone else expects he’s getting a good transfer for first team football in the summer… Kabak is auditioning, and it’s a most opurtinistic audition
I hope Kabak is here next season because it means he’s done the job well.
I wish him and nay the very very best of luck. I hope the last third of the season sees them write their name in LFC folklore.
But don’t be in any doubt that this is not like any transfer we’ve seen before.
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We saw clearly that Nat was the leader of the back line against Wolves.
We also saw how Fabinho is there for both the CBs it really is a team effort and we really don’t need to be divisive!
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Disagree. Kabak is the one organising and holding the shape, acting disciplined whilst Nat is given freedom to attack the ball/play as he sees fit.
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So you see it as a competition yet both players are needed in the team. You do the same if someone praises Mané you hark on about how good Salah is yet the poster praising Mané never mentionned Salah. It’s like a desease!
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You weren’t watching! Stop it,it really is disingenious!
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I’m really growing to like him. Carries well, reads the game well, and can punch a ground pass through to a CM. Hes not gung ho either, which I think suits Nat. They are both contributing as a unit and covering one and other.
For 20 years old, it’s going well for him. Let’s hope he continues to adjust to the PL and we sign him up.
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Lots were quick to criticise Kabak in the earlier games… Maybe rightly so
Anyone having to eat Humble Pie if this guy, at 20yrs old, helps us progress in the CL cannot be looking forward to it either… But then any real fan would welcome eating it and seconds on top if he stabilises that back-line of ours in the next couple of months eh!
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A long way to go for me, as well as other reservations about him physically… I think it would have been a whole lot more dicey if Jimenez was fit and harassing both Ozan and Nat. Wolves were pretty lacklustre through the middle and it showed with the chances they fluffed…
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Can anyone remember what VVD was like as a raw 20yr old…???
No, me neither.!
Kabak is all we have at the moment…
He is doing his best and THAT is all we can ask of him!
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Too right I was right to criticise they way he came into the team and he was rubbish. It was high risk from the coaching staff that nearly backfired Kabak was so shit. After a few training sessions he’s looking better and appears to have a steady partner in Nat all that goes a long way. He is looking better and better.
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They had a few chances agreed and its understandable given the inexperience of the CBs and the generally low confidence level of the team as a whole right now. I’ve got reservations about both Kabak and Nat but it’s really about giving credit where it’s due in the context of their level of experience and the situation they find themselves in.
If VVD, Gomez and Matip are miraculously all fit and ready to go from day 1 of next season then I’ll be quite happy not to see either of these two again because they are currently well below the quality we need in this position, but my guess is all 3 won’t be. In fact none of them may be and therefore any progression Kabak and Nat can make as a CB partnership for the rest of this season is likely to help us going into next.
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When we signed him, I thought Kabak is a disaster waiting to happen. His first few games did nothing to change that perception.
Gradually he has grown in confidence and his performance has become more and more assured. He still has a long way to go. But instead of dread, I’m getting used to a feeling of expectation.
He is 20, has a troubled past and has been thrown into the deep end. From here on, he will have my patience and support.
Keep up the fight, Ozan. 
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OK I’ve decided I’m on the band wagon. Had real concerns before we brought him in, he was definitely making the best of a bad situation, also he didn’t have it easy first few games (easy to understand in context of what was going on).
But think I’m convinced now that there’s enough there to build on and he could become a real good option moving forward. Him partnered with guys like VvD and Gomez (assuming they’re fit and in form) could be brilliant.
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