The talk around Liverpool lately can get a bit dramatic. Like we’ve suddenly forgotten how to play, like everything’s broken beyond repair. Truth is, a lot of it feels overblown when you actually look at what’s happening across the Premier League this season.

We’re not always as thrilling as we were at our best under Klopp, no point pretending otherwise. But the bigger question is: who is? Because if you’re judging us against some imagined standard of weekly, free-flowing, chance-after-chance football, you’re not going to find many teams hitting it either.

The league’s not exactly full of masterpieces

Plenty of good sides are finding it hard work. Arsenal, for all their quality, can look just as blunt trying to break down organised teams. City can play some lovely stuff, but even they have games where it’s a bit of a grind and you’re watching them recycle possession until something finally shifts.

Aston Villa have been clinical and that counts, but there are matches where they’ve had to ride it and nick it. Chelsea? Often a tough watch. United and Newcastle have both looked miles off it at points. So when Liverpool have a scruffy win or a slightly laboured performance, it doesn’t automatically mean we’re uniquely failing. It might just mean we’re playing in the same reality as everyone else.

After a bad run, you take the points any way you can

When you’ve had a genuinely poor spell, the priority isn’t putting on a show. It’s stopping the bleeding. It’s getting back to winning, building a bit of confidence, and letting the rest come later.

And that’s why I’ve got no issue with the attitude of “just get the results”. Not forever, obviously. But in the moment, you take a 2-0 that feels a bit flat over a 1-1 where you played “well”. Nobody gives out extra league points for being the more entertaining side.

Low blocks, set pieces, and the fine margins

Modern Premier League football is full of well-drilled low blocks. Teams are happy to sit in, stay compact, and make you prove you can create in tight spaces. If you’re not scoring from set pieces as well, it becomes even harder, because you’re basically relying on the perfect move every time.

The encouraging part is we are scoring goals now. The bit we need to clean up is the other end: stop giving teams soft routes back into games through avoidable set-piece situations. Make teams earn it. Do that, and suddenly the whole performance looks a lot calmer.

So yes, we can improve. We should. But the idea that Liverpool are miles behind the rest for quality of football? I’m not seeing it.

Written by Florian Musiala: 3 January 2026

Tags: efl match-review