The last few months for Andy Robertson at Liverpool were effectively summed up inside 32 minutes at Hampden on Tuesday evening.
First came the nightmare of an under-hit clearance that landed straight at the feet of Jude Bellingham to fire England into a 2-0 lead against Scotland.
Then, in the second half, Robertson made amends of sorts when his thrusting run into the area and cross was haplessly prodded into his own goal by Three Lions substitute Harry Maguire.
It was the first time the left-back had assisted the big centre-back since the pair were playing together for Hull City against Middlesbrough in April 2017. But that initial mistake was the moment lingering on the mind of the Scotland skipper afterwards.
“The second goal is completely my fault,” said Robertson after England eventually won 3-1. “I hate letting this team down and that’s what I felt I did. I hate costing goals and it was just that I didn’t quite expect the ball to land at my feet and it has just fallen to him, and when you’re coming up against Bellingham with the form he’s in, he’s not going to let you get away with it.
“I had to apologise to the team and the manager. I did that and I just tried to have a positive reaction in the second half and I thought I’ve done that.”
Robertson’s Scotland team-mates, though, were unanimous. “Robbo doesn’t have to say anything,” said goalkeeper Angus Gunn. “He’s our captain, he’s our leader. In the second half he was one of the most important players to get us back into the game and that shows his character.”
And it’s that temperament that has been put to the test in recent times at Liverpool due to a variety of circumstances that have been asking different questions of Robertson six years into his Anfield career.
Having taken a little while to settle following his arrival in the summer of 2017, Robertson has become a mainstay in the Liverpool starting line-up and a key figure in the way in which Jurgen Klopp’s side attacked their way to every major honour available between 2019 and 2022.
No defender has provided more assists in Premier League history – 53 of his total of 57 have come with the Reds – and the durability of the 29-year-old is such that since making becoming the first-choice left-back after Alberto Moreno suffered an injury in December 2017, he has not been involved in only 12 of 218 top-flight matchday squads for Liverpool, with two of his absences through suspension.
But the switch in April to a box midfield to allow Trent Alexander-Arnold to prosper in a hybrid right-back role has meant a tweak in role for Robertson, who has not found it a straightforward transition. With Alexander-Arnold more progressive, Robertson has had to reign in his forward tendencies and often become a third centre-back, which doesn’t play to his strengths.
Then there has been the chopping and changing in front of Robertson. The Scot had a strong relationship on the field with Sadio Mane ahead of him, but attempts to do the same with Luis Diaz were hampered by the Colombian missing much of last season through injury with Darwin Nunez, Cody Gakpo and Diogo Jota among those regularly tried out on the left wing.
Throw in a new-look midfield, with Curtis Jones having become a consistent starter on the left of the midfield three when available during the ongoing 15-game unbeaten run, and there has been much change with which Robertson has had to contend.
Some of his performances have suffered as a consequence, while this season’s opening two games against Chelsea and Bournemouth saw him improve after a poor start to each game. However, at Newcastle United and at home to Aston Villa last time out, Robertson was excellent – helped in part by two more tactical shifts.
For an hour at Newcastle, as in the last half-hour against Bournemouth, Liverpool were reduced to 10 men and switched to a more conventional back four in a 4-4-1 formation.
But more intriguing was the win over Villa in which both Robertson and Alexander-Arnold were excellent with the latter flummoxing the visitors somewhat by limiting his forays into the central midfield areas, thus giving Robertson more scope to push forward. And it was from the left-back’s corner that Nunez flicked on for Mohamed Salah to score the third in the second half.
That mix-and-match approach could serve Liverpool well going forward as they continue their transformation aided by new midfielders Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai, Ryan Gravenberch and Wataru Endo.
Robertson demonstrated his character in the second half against England on Tuesday. But he has already shown at Liverpool he is willing to take on the challenge of changing to adapt to a new-look Reds team.
