Slot’s Liverpool: Control Without Threat?

There was a point where Arne Slot’s Liverpool felt like a continuation of what we knew, just with a few clever tweaks. We still went after teams, still played with purpose, and when we got ourselves in front, we looked a bit more streetwise about seeing games out. Not frantic for the full 90. Not permanently on the edge of chaos. More control, without losing the bite.

But lately it’s felt like the dial’s been turned too far the other way. Instead of managing moments, we’re managing risk. Instead of attacking with confidence, we’re playing like losing the ball is the worst thing that can happen. The result is this slow, hesitant build-up where we seem more interested in keeping it than hurting anyone with it.

When control turns into caution

Control is meant to give you a platform to attack. It’s meant to pull opponents out, create space, and then exploit it. What’s frustrating is that the football being described here sounds like control for its own sake, and that’s when it becomes lethargic. You can feel the handbrake. You can see the extra touch, the sideways pass, the reluctance to play through pressure.

And with the attacking options Liverpool have, that’s the bit that feels borderline unforgivable. This isn’t a team begging for an outlet. It’s a team full of outlets, but the system isn’t getting the best out of them.

Salah isn’t suddenly the problem

Mohamed Salah doesn’t go from match-winner to passenger overnight. That’s not how players of that level work. If he’s getting the ball late, in poor areas, or with three defenders set and waiting, then of course he’s going to look less decisive. Not because he’s forgotten how to play, but because the conditions around him have changed.

That’s the heart of the complaint: the build-up is so slow that by the time it reaches him, the moment has passed. The break isn’t on. The space has gone. The opposition are back in shape. Liverpool end up trying to pick a lock with everyone standing still.

The common denominator question

The same argument is being applied across the squad. If multiple high-level players look a yard off, you do start to look upwards. Is it confidence? Is it instructions? Is it players being over-coached into safety first? When you’re watching a group that should be aggressive and assertive look timid, it’s natural to put that on the manager.

And that’s why this ends in the harshest place: the belief that Slot looks short of solutions, and that change might be needed quickly. Even the mention of Gerrard as an interim is less about romance and more about desperation: just give us something with a pulse, a bit of intent, a team that plays like Liverpool again.

Written by Frode Kippers: 8 January 2026