It is safe to say that Dejan Lovren did not enjoy the best debut season as a Liverpool player.
The Croatian centre-back cost the club £20 million last summer from Southampton, but his performances for the club suggested that the Reds were wrong to spend so much on him - as he struggled to bring the leadership and stability to the back-four which so many expected of him.
A poor debut season
Lovren came under intense scrutiny from fans when he made basic errors in defence, as well as missing the crucial penalty that knocked Liverpool out of the Europa League.
He also wasted Liverpool's final chance at getting to the FA Cup Final, when he blazed over an overly ambitious 35-yard shot, with virtually the last kick of the game against Aston Villa in the semi.
As a result, Lovren was cast on to the substitutes' bench, and Liverpool found a partnership in Martin Skrtel and Mamadou Sakho.
Pre-season still didn't convince fans
Nevertheless, Lovren was a part of the 30-man squad that took part in Liverpool's pre-season tour recently, and he seemed to be one of Brendan Rodgers' preferred choices.
He most notably featured in Liverpool's match against the Malaysia XI, where fans were still convinced that he shouldn't be anywhere near the first team.
Lovren came under fire when he was too easily bullied off the ball by Malaysia player Patrick Ronaldinho, who scored from the resulting move.
It was clear that he still needed time to become the player he was at the Saints, though his manager still seemed keen on him - taking Lovren to the Reds' first-team friendly in Helsinki and leaving Sakho at home to face Swindon Town.
Another chance at Stoke
Lovren was then chosen to start alongside Skrtel against Stoke City, during the opening fixture of the season.
This came to many fans surprised and caused an outrage on social media, when the team were announced.
What was even more surprising is the fact that Sakho, arguably Liverpool's best defender, was not even included in the squad, following rumours he may be leaving the club.
However, the panic caused soon died down, when fans learnt that Sakho missed training during the week, following the birth of his child.
Dejan Lovren was trusted to step-up, ahead of Kolo Toure, and showed that he still has something to offer the club.
In a game that had few stand-out performers, Lovren was one player that everyone was keeping an eye on. He, as well as the rest of the defence, managed to keep a clean sheet and also coped with the attacking threat Stoke came at Liverpool with.
After successfully doing his job at the back, it allowed Liverpool to steal all 3 points in the dying minutes of the game.
Will Lovren retain his place?
It was expected that Skrtel and Sakho would be Liverpool's centre-back pairing for the season ahead.
However, after Lovren performed so well, it may be Sakho now waiting for his chance to shine and he will have to battle his way back into the team.
If Lovren can consistently perform well, there is no doubt that he can have a long career at the club - but first he has much to do to make amends for his dreadful first 12 months on Merseyside.
