CAN JOE KEEP PLAYING THE LONG GAME?

Another summer brings decade of reflection for stalwart Gomez

- By IAN DOYLE

HOW long is too long? It’s a question Joe Gomez would be forgiven for asking as he faces another summer having his Liverpool career called into question.

An almost annual pursuit now is the debate over whether Gomez will leave Anfield for a fresh challenge.

He came close last year when part of a deal that would have seen Newcastle United winger Anthony Gordon move in the opposite direction, while in windows previous clubs as elevated as European Super League advocates Real Madrid have been linked.

And as Gomez now celebrates a decade since arriving at Liverpool, the centre-back once again finds himself standing at the crossroads.

It says much about his all-too-regular injury issues - a hamstring problem forced him to miss most of the second half of last season - that in 10 years Gomez is still nine short of reaching the landmark of 250 appearances.