"It's a bit different..." - Liverpool star makes Sadio Mane and Darwin Nunez comparison after Brentford loss

Liverpool star Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain has revealed that his side are struggling to cope with the loss of Sadio Mane following their shock 3-1 defeat to Brentford on Monday evening.

Liverpool shipped two goals before half-time, with Oxlade-Chamberlain's second half strike proving to be merely a consolation at the Gtech Community Stadium.

The result adds to a series of poor performances this season, with Champions League qualification looking even further out of Jurgen Klopp's reach.

The Ox reckons some of their recent form is down to the loss of Sadio Mane who packed his bags for Bayern Munich last summer.

The 29-year-old, who spent last season on loan at Brentford, told LFCTV: "I've watched Sadio and Mo [Salah] play that position for years and one thing that they have both done outstandingly well is provide goals for the team."

Sadio Mane's stats at Liverpool speak for themselves, with the 30-year-old scoring 120 goals for the club and registering 48 assists.

His performances led to both Premier League and Champions League glory, whilst he formed a close relationship with the fans.

Oxlade-Chamberlain has struggled to make the same impact since swapping North London for Merseyside over five years ago.

However, injuries to Diogo Jota, Luis Dias and Roberto Firmino has seen him promoted to the starting line-up, where he will be hoping to rekindle his Arsenal form.

Oxlade-Chamberlain on Nunez

Despite the loss of Mane, Oxlade-Chamberlain believes that Darwin Nunez could fill the void left by the Senegal star, stating: "It’s a bit different when Darwin [Nunez] is playing through the middle because he’s such a threat in behind. When Bobby [Roberto Firmino] plays that role he usually drops a bit deeper and fills that half space.

"That has been my role from there, being the one who drops deep and tries to link but ultimately get up with Darwin and Mo’s pace and get in and around the box", Oxlade-Chamberlain added.

He went on to say: "That’s the thing the last few games I’ve been missing, that real goal threat, so it was nice to sort of get that chance and take it tonight – it’s just a shame it doesn’t mean anything."

Darwin Nunez had a goal chalked off for offside against Brentford, but fans will hope his speed and desire will translate to goals soon. Meanwhile, the recent signing of Cody Gakpo should bolster their attack.

Topics: Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Cody Gakpo, Darwin Nunez, Liverpool, Sadio Mane, Football

Joe Adams

Joe is a Journalist for SPORTbible with a primary focus on football. He has previously covered a number of other sports including boxing, rugby and F1. Wishes he was born left-footed.

@joeadamsjourno