Liverpool Need Legs and Edge, Not Excuses

The most frustrating thing isn’t one bad moment, it’s the lack of bite: too much safe possession, too little running, and not enough desire for second balls. That has to change quickly.

I’m struggling with the idea that this is just a little dip or a bit of bad luck. What’s winding me up is how samey it can look: players popping up out of position, the ball going backwards for the sake of it, and the same lads being trusted even when they’re not delivering.

That’s not a personal vendetta against any one player. It’s more the wider feeling that we’re leaning on familiar solutions when the game in front of us is begging for something sharper. When you’re flat, you need spark. When you’re loose, you need discipline. When you’re passive, you need aggression.

The second-ball issue isn’t talent, it’s intent

Everyone keeps saying we’re “not winning second balls”. To me, that’s not even the whole story. The bigger problem is we don’t look like we’re trying to win them.

Second balls aren’t mystical. They’re usually about who reacts first, who sprints five yards, who leans in, who makes it uncomfortable. There’s obviously a line: you don’t want chaos, you don’t want silly fouls. But at the minute it feels like we’re nowhere near that line. We’re not toeing it. We’re standing ten yards off it.

Run, or you’re just moving pieces around

This is where it gets really simple. We can run. We’ve got athletes. Yet too often in attack we walk, admire the shape, take an extra touch, and let the other side set themselves. If you’re not moving defenders, you’re basically doing them a favour.

I was at the United match in October and there was an older fella next to me who spent the whole game shouting one word: “RUN.” Hoarse by the end, but he wasn’t wrong. You can talk tactics all day, but intensity is the entry fee in this league. Without it, any plan looks toothless.

Signings won’t fix a mindset

On recruitment, I’m honestly at the point where I “don’t care” in the short term. Not because signings don’t matter, but because if the approach stays passive, you can swap names and still get the same symptoms. Midfield and attack won’t suddenly click if the default setting is slow and safe.

If anything, a centre-back or two feels like the obvious area to look at, because you want robustness behind you if you’re going to play a certain way. But even then, the bigger ask is behavioural: get aggressive, get after loose balls, and play like it means something again.

Written by chicagored: 7 January 2026