Arne Slot hasn’t failed as yet, and it’s important to say that up front. But walking away from Anfield and replaying the game in your head, it’s hard to shake the feeling that Liverpool have started playing like a frightened side.
Not frightened in the sense of being outclassed, more in the way the whole thing is approached: keep it tight, avoid defeat, and maybe nick a win if something drops. You can see why a manager under pressure might lean that way, but it’s not how Liverpool at their best have ever looked. We’re meant to be the team that turns the screw, not the one hoping the screw doesn’t get turned on us.
Where’s the risk and responsibility?
The biggest giveaway is that nobody seems to grab a game by the scruff of the neck. That doesn’t always mean a worldie or a 40-yard run. Sometimes it’s a midfielder demanding it under pressure, a full-back taking a man on even if it doesn’t come off, or a forward trying something early rather than recycling and waiting for the perfect moment.
Right now, we look coached into caution. A few players aren’t at the level we know they can reach, and others look stifled by the role they’re being asked to do or the instruction to not take chances. When that happens, the whole side loses its edge. The press gets half a yard slower, the passing gets safer, and the crowd can sense it.
The substitutions feel like protection, not ambition
It’s also hard not to notice the pattern with changes. The substitutions, at least in this one, didn’t land like a proper attempt to win the match. They felt more like looking after bodies for the next fixture, keeping the squad ticking over rather than throwing the kitchen sink at it.
To be fair, there’s always context we don’t see. But football at Anfield has a simple truth: if you want the crowd, you have to show them you want the win. Even a risky move that backfires can get respect if it’s clearly meant to tilt the game our way.
Not doom and gloom, but we all have a part to play
I’ve been on the season ticket a long time and this isn’t the worst Liverpool team I’ve seen, nowhere near. There’s quality in this squad, and there are still competitions to play for. We don’t have a divine right to win everything, and the table doesn’t read like a disaster.
But the atmosphere has to be mentioned as well. The fans have been quiet at times, only really sparking for certain opponents, and that isn’t always down to what’s happening on the pitch. If we’re in a bad patch, then we need to do our bit too. Get behind the lads, push them through it, and maybe that confidence and cohesion returns quicker than we think.
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