Liverpool fans were hoping that the rollicking, all-energy experience mid-week of Liverpool absolutely smashing Galatasaray in the Champions League would carry over into the weekend’s Premier League tilt against Brighton & Hove Albion. Given the way these results have gone most of the season, one might ask why hope? And, well, given the result today – a wilting, rather disappointing loss to the Seagulls – one might walk around with a sneering grin. I would not be that person because I personally
feel to attacked by the performance I witnessed on the day, but since I have to write about it, let’s at least go into this as fans truly living through a decidedly difficult patch on the field.
Winners and Losers
Winners
Milos Kerkez
Liverpool’s left-back spent most of the first quarter of the season coming in for quite the stick – some deserved but a lot, in this observer’s opinion, generally not. It would be a difficult ask for anyone coming into a title-winning side and taking a starting job from one of the folks that helped win that accolade. It is made that much more difficult if the person you’re coming in to replace is someone whose legend in the club and league is as hallowed as Andy Robertson’s, who will go down as one of the best at his position to ever do it. So, a steep learning curve had to be expected. The young Hungarian did manage to show signs of improvement and, even in the difficult patches of Liverpool’s season, has looked to have finally settled. That’s why it was so great to see him pick up the goal – not just with the presence of mind in terms of spotting the opportunity and opting to gamble on a misplay, but finishing with such an audacious touch. Kerkez, and indeed this full team, have bright futures ahead when someone is able to finally harness their collective gifts.
Losers
Liverpool’s Backline
Besides Kerkez’s goal, the defensive unit didn’t have much to be proud of on the day. Liverpool often looked too slow to react and weirdly outnumbered with the opposing forwards often looking to occupy the half-space between Ryan Gravenberch and the Reds’ center-backs. It meant that the Brighton forwards often found themselves in positions to receive the ball basically right in the center of Liverpool’s penalty area. It made for a disjointed and nervy showing at the back.
Liverpool’s Attacking Urgency
Whatever verve and inspiration fueled the Reds’ display against Galatasaray midweek looked absolutely absent during large stretches of this match, particularly in the crucial period in the second half before Brighton scored the go-ahead goal. While I wouldn’t say the attack was in full flight in the first half, there were more than a few chances that did make it feel like Brighton’s opener was against the run of play. Things evened out a bit during the rest of that half, but Liverpool had every right to feel frustrated at not taking more out of the first frame. If they indeed felt that frustration, though, you couldn’t tell by the rather disjointed passing formations and lack of decisiveness on the ball. It is saying something when the folks who looked most open to actually creating something were Cody Gakpo, Florian Wirtz, and Rio Ngumoha. And while I will have things to say about Gakpo’s overall performance, there was at least that bullish desire to point the attack towards goal. The kind of listless performance we saw in that second half, though, will do little to calm the noise from the fanbase…
Dissecting the Narrative
…which is the perfect place to start, I suppose. I’ve been loathe to wade into the discussion on Arne Slot’s future as Liverpool head coach for a myriad of reasons, but mostly because there’s still some goodwill banked on my end for being the winner of a Premier League trophy. Something that only Jurgen Klopp can lay claim to as far as Liverpool managers go. So, that counts for something.
But the troubling thing for me is that last season’s success seemed to hinge on Slot’s ability to make in-game tweaks. I remember when we got to about December and had seen him make the right substitution/tactical shifts and found myself thinking, “wow, this guy seems to get all of the half-time adjustments right.” Even as the results became a bit more of a grind about this time of year, and the club seemed to begin shifting into a team that struggled to get out of the blocks early, Slot’s ability to make the right calls at half-time more or less ensured that the great start to the year would be translated into a major team accomplishment.
That has seemingly disappeared this year in league fixtures, where I don’t have the same trust that this team will not only fight their way back from a deficit, but I actively can’t trust them to maintain a lead. It has been a rather dispiriting run of results, especially at a time when the direct challengers to Champions League qualification are handing us opportunities to drive that race.
I don’t know that I would be able to pull the trigger sacking Slot right now (and, honestly, my instinct is to let things ride a little longer). But looking at the fixture list after the break, I can’t imagine the value in keeping him on if Liverpool crash out of the Champions League against PSG. Especially if there’s a candidate that we all know the club hierarchy are interested in bringing on and that there may be some competition for if a certain club up the M62 might also be in need of a new coach. Which is to say that a thing I *do* often think about might soon present itself: the point where opportunity and circumstance align.
All told, it’s hard for me to see Slot still at the helm next year if he doesn’t win the Champions League. And given how difficult that side of the draw is – PSG and either Real Madrid or Bayern in the semis – it’s not likely. Which, I guess, is the closest I’ll come to handicapping this particular bit.
What Happens Next
The International Break comes for us all! Or, in this case, gives us a brief respite from the rather awful spate of Premier League performances we’ve had to endure. Here’s hoping that Liverpool’s injured players – which now includes Alisson Becker, Hugo Ekitike, and Mohamed Salah – can use the break to find their way back to health in time to support the run-in. If we can get a few weeks of a healthy Alexander Isak as well, that would at least help improve the options in terms of selection and depth. A lot of ifs and, unfortunately, not a whole lot of confidence in any of it. What a difference a year makes.
