Liverpool Need More Zip, Not More Waiting

Watching Liverpool at the moment, the frustrating bit isn’t always the end product. It’s the build-up. Too many touches, too much delay, and not enough forward movement to make the opposition turn and run back towards their own goal.

That’s why the names being thrown around by fans all tend to point the same way: add energy, add speed of thought, and move the ball with purpose. Whether that’s in the market now or later, the idea is simple. This side can’t afford to feel “toooooooo slooooooooow” for long.

Guehi feels like a deal with conditions

Marc Guehi is the kind of defender you can see fitting a top Premier League side: quick enough to defend space, comfortable enough to play, and calm under pressure. The issue, as ever with Crystal Palace in January, is leverage.

If Palace don’t want to sell mid-season, they won’t. So it becomes about terms: either you pay a fee they can’t refuse, or you make it easier for them by letting the player stay put until the summer. That “buy now, loan back” structure is often what turns a hard no into a maybe, because it protects their season while still letting the buying club get business done early.

Schlotterbeck: the ball-moving angle

Another route is going after a proper ball-playing centre-back. Nico Schlotterbeck gets mentioned for that reason. It’s not just about passing for the sake of it, either. It’s about shifting tempo. One clean forward pass into midfield, or into feet between the lines, can save you a whole phase of slow circulation.

When Liverpool are at their best, the ball travels faster than the opponent can shuffle. A defender who’s brave and accurate helps that. It also helps the press, because you’re attacking while the other side is still set up for defending, not countering.

Ederson and the need for legs in midfield

In midfield, the argument here is more direct: Liverpool need more legs. Ederson has been put forward as someone who could bring pace and energy, even if he isn’t a classic sit-and-screen number six.

That’s the key distinction. This isn’t necessarily about finding one player who does everything. It’s about improving the physical feel of the side, so the ball moves earlier and the next action comes quicker. If you think Mac Allister looks a yard slower at the moment, then you naturally start looking for profiles who can cover ground, snap into second balls, and carry it forward instead of recycling.

Get the ball to the striker earlier

There’s also a knock-on effect up top. If Ekitike is the forward in question, then supply matters. Strikers don’t want to receive it with three defenders set, a midfield line sat on the edge of the box, and no runners beyond them. They want it early, when there’s still a decision to force.

And that brings us back to the same point: tempo. Whether it’s a centre-back stepping in, a midfielder turning quicker, or simply more movement ahead of the ball, Liverpool need to speed up the moments that decide games. Not with panic. With purpose.

Written by shughes55: 3 January 2026