When the gap starts feeling familiar again

A potential 17-point gap to Arsenal is grim enough on its own. The bigger worry is the feeling we’re watching the same approach repeat, without the usual signs that a team is learning as it goes.

The most worrying thing about staring at a possible 17-point gap to Arsenal isn’t just the number. It’s what that number starts to whisper to you, the old memories of seasons where we were miles off it and everyone agreed it simply wasn’t good enough.

And yes, the context matters. We lifted the league title last year, so the bar isn’t “be competitive” anymore. The bar is being in the conversation, staying in touch, looking like a side that can put a run together and make the spring feel dangerous for everyone else. When you’ve been at the summit, drifting into the pack feels worse because you know what it’s supposed to look like.

Gaps happen, but there should be signs

There’s a version of this season most of us could have lived with. A version where you’re a bit behind Manchester City and Arsenal because you’ve had churn in the squad, new ideas bedding in, combinations needing time, a few rough edges showing up under pressure. That’s football. You accept a bit of turbulence if the direction of travel looks right.

But the frustration here is that it doesn’t feel like teething problems. It feels like we keep bumping into the same walls, and the response is to run at them again with the same plan, hoping the wall politely moves this time.

The “formula” question

Supporters can disagree on details, but you can usually tell when a manager is learning in public. Little tweaks. Different solutions for different opponents. A willingness to change the picture when the game is screaming for something else.

The complaint is simpler than any tactical diagram: the approach hasn’t worked often enough, and yet it keeps coming back. That’s what drives people spare. Not a bad result here or there, not even a bad month. It’s the sense that the same choices are being made, even when the evidence is piling up that they’re not shifting the trajectory.

Standards are the point, not the noise

Some will say “stop panicking”, others will say “it’s done”. Truth is, the debate only feels this heated because standards have been raised. Finishing 30 points off the pace used to be a red flag. It still should be.

So this isn’t about demanding perfection every week. It’s about demanding that Liverpool look like they’re closing a gap, not normalising it. If Arne Slot wants the backing that comes with a big job, he has to show that stubbornness isn’t the same thing as conviction.

Written by Red_Flyer69: 14 January 2026