You know the script. By now you’ve more than likely heard the narrative on repeat. Liverpool, if the club has serious designs on winning the league, needs to solidify a dodgy defense. Jurgen Klopp’s side, so the story goes, is utterly breathtaking in attack, but completely brainless at the back.
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Is that truly the case, though? Jordan Henderson certainly doesn’t think so. “A lot of the pundits and press up will big up that we’re conceding too many goals, but in terms of the team, when you’re actually in a game, I feel as though we’re dominating and teams aren’t getting many chances,” the captain argued.
“We’re definitely going in the right direction.”
Liverpool has conceded 13 goals after 10 league games, five of them let in during the opening two matches as the team found its footing. Considering the Merseysiders have already travelled to the Emirates, White Hart Lane, Stamford Bridge, Selhurst Park as well as hosted defending champion Leicester and Manchester United, it is not an alarming figure.
For the same spell last season, Claudio Ranieri’s title winner already had 17 in the against column. And the Red Devils were breached 14 times at this stage during Alex Ferguson’s final campaign at the helm en route to ruling the division in 2012-13.
Chelsea was split open just thrice for the same period in 2010-11, with United beaten 12 times before going on to be crowned champion.
In context, Liverpool’s rearguard is not as deplorable as has been portrayed.
The defense may not be clean sheet kings, but the Reds are not built to be such.“We think the best kind of defending is keeping the ball,” Klopp explained of the club’s front-foot approach, which naturally involves a greater degree of risk.
Liverpool is incredibly difficult to fashion chances against, restricting the opposition to a league-low shots total of 78. While it will be a source of annoyance that the limited attempts on goal tend to be successful, it is an issue that the backroom team is confident will be ironed out as the season progresses.
It would be easier for the Reds to record shutouts if they adopted a less aggressive stance, but they are playing to their strengths, which is quite obviously serving them well.
On inspection, Liverpool’s much-changed defense - James Milner in at left back, Nathaniel Clyne continuing on the opposite flank, a new center half pairing with Joel Matip alongside Dejan Lovren and summer signing Loris Karius now the No.1 - is a solid unit.
Milner and Clyne are creative fullbacks that help exert Liverpool’s dominance on the ball and in the final third. Matip on a free is unequivocally one of the best bits of business of the summer, the Cameroon international excellent aerially as well as elegant on the ball. 
Lovren’s horrid mistake at Crystal Palace aside, he has been largely impressive since Klopp’s arrival.
It is still early, testing days for Karius, but there is conviction he will develop into one of Europe’s premier goalkeepers.
Much has been made of Liverpool’s inability to cope with set pieces, but they have conceded just four goals this way in the top-flight - the same number as Tottenham, Chelsea and Arsenal.
The weekend’s visitor Watford, hailed for a stubborn back line under Walter Mazzarri, has allowed one more.
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While Liverpool can undoubtedly sharpen up defensively, the side is far from the dysfunctional mess the defense has been dressed up as.
Against Watford on Sunday afternoon, Klopp’s side need to start starving the narrative. And as usual, they'll look to do that in an assertive, offensive manner.
