What is going wrong at Liverpool? The problems Arne Slot must fix to salvage title defence

Four losses on the bounce and a first home defeat to Manchester United in almost a decade should have alarm bells ringing on Merseyside. 

The season is still young, but Liverpool are now four points off Premier League leader Arsenal, and threatening to make a limp defence of the title which they won so comfortably last season.

The club have not lost four in a row since Brendan Rodgers was in charge in 2014. Lose another and it will be the first time the Reds have lost five on the bounce since September 1953.

More concerning than the actual results, though, will well be disjointed performances seen from the defending champions so far this season.

After almost £450million of spending in the summer, a bedding-in period was to be expected from Liverpool’s new recruits.

But the big money spent on the likes of Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz is yet to produce a return, leaving Arne Slot’s side looking chaotic, unabalanced, and a shadow of the well-oiled machine that cantered to the title last season.

With six games in their next 20 days, there may be little time for deep thought and reflection, but that jam-packed schedule is perhaps why it is even more vital that Slot gets back on track before it’s too late.

Be bolder with attacking selections

The sight of Mohamed Salah trudging towards the substitutes bench with his side searching for an equaliser is not one that many Liverpool fans have been used to.

The Egyptian forward has so often been the man for the big occasion throughout his time at Anfield, and conjured up several late goals to guide his side to the title last season.

But the 33-year-old is now without a goal from open play in seven league appearances – the worst spell of his Liverpool career – and was once again wasteful, if not anonymous, on Sunday.

The signings of Wirtz and Isak over the summer were, in part, preparing for life without Salah, but perhaps that time is coming quicker than many expected.

@metrosportuk

Look away now Liverpool fans 🫣 After their defeat to Manchester United in the Premier League, Liverpool have now lost four games in a row, have dropped to fourth in the league and are four points off the top, Wirtz has gone 10 games without a goal or assist, Salah only has two league goals, and Isak (who they spent £130m on) is still yet to score in the league. 🎥 / @blvckdrip__ #liverpool #manchesterunited #premierleague #maguire #salah

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‘I think we’re at that stage now where Mo Salah shouldn’t be a guaranteed starter every week,’ Carragher told The Gary Neville Podcast. ‘I do think this is a real conundrum for the manager going forward.

‘He should always start at Anfield because Liverpool will be on top, around the edge of the box and more often than not he scores in those situation.

‘But I do think in the away games and helping your full-back, I don’t think Salah should be starting every game right now, certainly away from home, with the form he’s in.’

After three goals in his first five league games, Hugo Ekitike has not started a league game. Federico Chiesa, meanwhile, has looked likely this season and popped up with another goal contribution when thrown on against United.

Slot has never had more options at his disposal in the final third, but the Dutchman needs to be bold and use them, whoever that risks upsetting.

Take ‘nervous wreck’ Kerkez out of the firing line

Milos Kerkez looked somewhat of a steal when he signed for Liverpool over the summer for just £40m.

The Hungarian international’s all-action performances caught the eye at Bournemouth, but he has struggled immensely to replicate those levels of performance in a Liverpool shirt.

Any semblance of a partnership with Virgil van Dijk has failed to materialise, and United regularly sought to target Kerkez with the combination of Amad Diallo and Bryan Mbeumo down Liverpool’s left.

‘Kerkez is very nervous. He’s like a nervous wreck out there. I feel for him,’ Jamie Redknapp noted on Sky Sports at half-time. ‘It’s almost a bit too much for him. The game is happening a bit too fast and Diallo is causing him problems.’

At just 21 years of age, perhaps this was to be expected, but another poor performance will raise eyebrows.

Andy Robertson still waits in the wings, but has started just two matches in all competitions this season. Perhaps now is the time for the experienced Scott to return, and allow Kerkez to rediscover his best away from the unrelenting spotlight of matchday action.

Don’t overreact

For all their troubles and inconsistencies, it is worth noting just how different this result could have been for Liverpool.

There was certainly some controversy about United’s opener, which could well have been ruled out on another day.

And going forward themselves, the hosts had more than enough chances to win it. Cody Gakpo may have scored, but the Dutch attacker also hit the post three times, headed wide from six yards out and generated more expected goals xG (1.47) than the entire United team combined (1.37).

Combined with their defeats to Chelsea and Crystal Palace, which were the result of last-minute goals, it’s clear that the defending champions are not experiencing the rub of the green at the minute.

That is, in part, down to the more open way that Slot is looking to set his side up this season, but it’s also no reason to tear down the walls and start over again just yet.

The Dutchman was keen to make that point at full-time, noting: ‘If you would have told me we are 1-0 down against a United team that played in the style they did, and you would have told me that we would create eight, nine, 10 open chances, then I would have said to you that I don’t think that is possible. But it was possible.’

The task for Slot is to ensure that his team stop falling on the wrong side of fortune. Even better still, find a balance and a few tweaks that get them closer to the side of last season that hardly needed fortune.

Slot has the ability and a squad stacked with talent to help him find the formula, but the Premier League is an unrelenting beast. Arsenal have shown no signs of slippage so far, and the defending champions can’t afford to fall too much further behind even at this early stage.

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