What's Going Wrong with LFC ?

It started so well didn't it ?, 6 games and 6 wins, we all knew there were .... teething issues, but we never thought they would lose 3 in a row.

The fanbase is now in doubt if Slot is the right guy, from cries of 'he does not know what he is doing' to 'Slot Out'.  A bit extreme but football fans are not known for their patience, and in this case its a little too over the top even for the harshest Slot critic.  After all  Liverpool are just one point behind league leaders Arsenal and only seven premier league games into the season.

My own perspective is that this new LFC team have first of all not connected properly, they are still having to look for the next pass to a team mate, and therefore the radar of the existing players need to be adjusted to find the new signings.  The old fight seems to be missing, Macca is out of form  and the new signings like Wirtz, and Isak do not bring the same level of intensity Liverpool had become accustomed to by the likes of Diaz, Nunes, and Jota.  Some also argue and rightly the amount of changes to the lineup that the team has between games, we saw last season Slot sticking to a set regular team.  But this constant chopping and changing is something the manager probably feels he has to do.

So why is he chopping and changing so much ? I think he has a number of factors going through his head.  The first is the need to justify the spending and use the likes of Wirtz and Isak, you cannot justify having two or even one of them sit on subs bench.  The second are issues with the right back position, its pretty obvious that he does not feel comfortable with the two actual right backs he has in Frimpong and Bradley and would much rather prefer the stability that Szoboszlai offers.  Against the hardest opponent Liverpool faced this season so far in Arsenal, Szoboszlai had a flawless performance in that position.  But recently some fans have noticed that may not be as great as people thought when he is pressed by a decent opposite winger.  Also, there is an argument to suggest that neither Bradley or Frimpong have done anything so bad that justifies being dropped, or been given only one half of a game.  Then there is that argument that perhaps the issue with Salah is that he has not had a consistent overlapping and underlapping right back to work with that has meant he himself is not effective. 

Szoboszlai at right back also creates an issue for the midfield.  With Gravenberch now given license to roam a little forward, and an unfit/not 100% Mac Allister, there is not enough energy or spark in that midfield, and the issue is compounded by having the creative 10 in Wirtz acting as the 3rd midfielder.  As many have stated, it almost feels like Slot has to play his three best midfielders somewhere in the team along with Wirtz.  This formula just does not work well with the current version of Mac Allister, as opposition sides cut through the Liverpool midfield with ease.

As for the defense, we saw gainst Chelsea that Slot would rather play his best midfielders in defense rather than bring on Gomez.  This is something that Klopp also did and failed in the 21/22 season, its just not a viable long term solution if ot needs to be done.  The best midfielders should always be played in midfield.  Also, on Kerkez, there is an argument to say that he has not done much wrong since joining Liverpool, and it really was strange against Chelsea when he was taken off.  It was clear in that game that Gakpo does not seem to know how to work with Kerkez yet, the combinations are just not evident at this moment, and perhaps that's why Slot bought Robertson on against Chelsea.

On Isak, it has to be said that his late arrival has not helped this team.  Perhaps Slot should really just play Ekitike for 75 to 80 mins of each game and only use Isak for the remainder of premier league and champions league games i.e. give him a max of 20 mins at the end of those games and a start in the cup games.  I say this because Ekitike is a more active striker and is fit and above all has shown he can score goals.  With Diaz gone the attack has lost a dueler, dribbler and presser, we need to replace some of that with Ekitike's movement up front.  Isak needs to be introduced as a starter when he is fully fit and not now when things are tough and he is relatively slow at this point in terms of match sharpness.

My conclusion is, let Slot work it out, we may lose a few more games along the way, but for now the title is well within reach, so no need to panic as much as we are witnessing/hearing and no one needs to get the sack !!!