There’s a familiar feeling creeping in after nights like this: Liverpool have plenty of the ball, plenty of territory, and yet it all looks a bit… polite. And when it’s polite, the opposition get exactly what they want. Ten men behind the ball, shape set, the crowd goes flat, and we’re left recycling it until the moment’s gone.

If you handed me the job tomorrow, the headline wouldn’t be some grand tactical reinvention. It’d be getting the basics back to a level where the talent in the squad actually shows. Fit, sharp, brave on the ball, and quicker in the mind.

Fitness first, because everything else sits on it

I know “run more” can sound like a lazy answer, but fitness is the platform for everything we associate with Liverpool at our best: the ability to press, to counter-press, to get back into shape, to keep the tempo high for 90 minutes rather than 20.

The point isn’t turning it into a punishment exercise or pretending injuries don’t happen. They do. But there’s a difference between bad luck and a side that regularly looks leggy, second to loose balls, or slow to react in transitions. If the intensity isn’t there, the rest of the plan falls apart.

Less “high-octane press”, more smart speed

I’m not even sure the answer is going straight back to an all-out press, especially if you’re worried about what it exposes behind. If your defensive line or your rest defence isn’t right, going full throttle can just turn games into chaos, and not always the fun kind.

What I’d want is speed in possession. Get the ball to the next player in the right position with two fewer passes. Not because possession is bad, but because slow possession is basically an invitation for the opposition to reset.

Two-second decisions and a bit more risk

The best sides make you feel like you’re always a step behind. I remember the idea you mentioned from Bayern in the Robben era: drills where the ball has to be released in under two seconds. Whether it’s into space or into a teammate’s feet, it has to keep moving. That’s the bit we’re missing too often.

This season, we’ve had spells where the pattern feels like sideways, sideways, backwards, then a hopeful ball once the window has closed. And you can see why players do it: nobody wants to be the one who coughs it up. But if you’re never prepared to lose it, you’re also never prepared to hurt anyone.

So, yeah: speed the passes up, cut out the extra touches, and accept that the odd cheap turnover is the price of getting back to being dangerous. Because the “safe” version isn’t protecting us anyway.

Written by ScouserInFrance: 13 January 2026

Tags: tactics efl injury