It is October 22nd 2017 . An enraged Jurgen Klopp stands pitch side at Wembley with an expression of sheer anguish on his face, as his Liverpool side slump to an embarrassing 4-1 defeat at the hands of Tottenham Hotspur.

In a game of chess between the sides, Mauricio Pochettinho’s men were careful, considered and making their every move count, while the Reds were left to deal with the adverse implications of playing without a sufficient strategy; as they were picked apart one by one.

A car-crash performance from Liverpool enabled Spurs to waltz to a 4-1 triumph;  Klopp’s side were simply bystanders to the capitulation that was unravelling around them.

One man who was at the forefront of the post-match backlash was Dejan Lovren.

The Croatian centre-half was axed after half an hour of play and was replaced by Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. Lovren exited knowing all too well that he wouldn’t be met with open arms on the sidelines by Klopp; instead, an unforgiving grimace that laid bare the Liverpool manager’s disbelief greeted the defender.

Liverpool had plumbed the depths of despair at Wembley and Lovren was the man to reach rock-bottom; severely damaging his reputation in the process.

The Merseysiders were two goals down within the opening 12 minutes of play, and all the fingers were being pointed in the direction of the much-maligned Lovren; whose defending was highly questionable on both occasions.

It proved to be the tipping point for the 28-year-old, who has been walking a tightrope for some time at Anfield now. Being replaced midway into a match for no apparent reason other than a poor display never bodes well for one’s chances of regular first-team football.

Many saw this as the beginning of the end of his controversial Liverpool career.

The following league game saw Lovren omitted from the matchday squad; in his absence a comfortable 3-0 victory over Huddersfield Town was achieved. It appeared that fans’ predictions of an inevitable Anfield departure was well and truly on the cards.

However, since then he has featured in the majority of the Reds’ encounters.  Klopp’s ever-present rotation policy has played a part in his return, though, being presented captaincy in the dramatic 4-3 triumph over Manchester City shows that he is no lost cause. In fact, since the Spurs debacle, much to people’s surprise, he has been highly impressive.

Lovren’s Anfield tenure has never been plain-sailing but he has responded emphatically to each challenge facing him.

He arrived at the club having establishing himself as one of the best defenders in the league, after a successful spell with Southampton. Ironically, one of his highlights with his former side was scoring at the home of the Reds, as Ronald Koeman’s men were one of only two sides to inflict defeat on the Reds on home soil during the 2013/14 season.  His towering header condemned Brendan Rodgers’ Liverpool to their first loss in their unforgettable whirlwind campaign.

Ever since his £25 million move in the summer of 2014, he has failed to live up to expectations. Thus far, Lovren has simply been remembered for all the wrong reasons, with the exception of one astounding moment.

His unforgettable header against Borussia Dortmund to send Liverpool into the Europa League semi-finals lifted the dark cloud that had followed his every move on Merseyside, but in the end, this paled into insignificance as Klopp’s side, of course, would go onto lose the subsequent final to Sevilla.

Virgil van Dijk’s long-awaited January arrival further sparked debate that the Croat’s L4 days were numbered, but he has embarked upon his road to redemption.

The former Saints player recently helped Liverpool on their way to a 4-0 win at Bournemouth in December with an impressive diving header, which he followed up with a match-winning assist to fellow centre-half Ragnar Klavan a fortnight later at Burnley.

He may well not be first-choice centre-back in the years to follow, but he has made great strides since that chastening October defeat against Pochettino’s men.

Liverpool supporters have become all too accustomed with Lovren being a liability in the Reds’ rearguard, often looking out of depth and out of ideas. But now, he has emerged from out of the shadows and is seemingly a man on a mission to prove his long list of doubters wrong.

Tom Cavilla.