Most of the discussion following Liverpool's 2-0 defeat at the hands of Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday was about balance. Arne Slot switched to a back five, something he very rarely does, with Joe Gomez coming in at centre-back while Miloš Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong were the nominal wing-backs. However, at one end, this did little to limit les Rouge-et-Bleu's attacking opportunties while, at the other, the Reds recorded, by some distance, their lowest xG figure under Slot.
The only good result of the night from a Liverpool point of view is the fact that PSG only managed to score twice; Désiré Doué's looping deflected shot opening the scoring, before Khvicha Kvaratskhelia added a second. Overall though, les Parisiens had 18 shots, of which six were on target, created four big chances and racked up an enormous xG figure of 2.35.
At the other end however, there are certainly question marks around PSG goalkeeper Matvey Safonov, after he surprisingly usurped Lucas Chevalier in the pecking order. However, in this match, the Russian was never tested. Liverpool failed to muster a shot on target for only the second time this season, also doing so during January's drab goalless draw with Arsenal. That ended a sequence of 600 Premier League fixtures in which they'd done so, dating back to March 2010 against Wigan.
At the Parc des Princes meantime, Slot's team mustered just three shots all told, no big chances and a miserly xG figure of 0.17, which ranks among the lowest across his tenure on Merseyside.
Liverpool's lowest xG under Arne Slot
- 8 April 2026: Paris Saint-Germain 2-0 Liverpool. xG - 0.17.
- 5 March 2025: Paris Saint-Germain 0-1 Liverpool. xG - 0.27.
- 8 January 2026: Arsenal 0-0 Liverpool. xG - 0.36.
- 20 December 2025: Tottenham Hotspur 1-2 Liverpool. xG - 0.59.
- 29 October 2025: Liverpool 0-3 Crystal Palace (EFL Cup). xG - 0.59.
- 12 February 2025: Everton 2-2 Liverpool. xG - 0.66.
- 9 November 2025: Manchester City 3-0 Liverpool. xG - 0.72.
- 24 January 2026: Bournemouth 3-2 Liverpool. xG - 0.84.
Note: Statistics courtesy of Statmuse.
Wednesday night was, by some substantial distance, the lowest xG figure Liverpool have recorded during Slot's tenure. In fact, both of the lowest two have come at Parc des Princes, the other during last year's round of 16, when they pulled off the ultimate smash and grab; Alisson producing nine saves, before Harvey Elliott won it right at the death with one of their two shots on the night.
In total, across 105 matches with Slot at the helm, the Reds have only recorded an xG lower than one eight times, of which six have come this season and three have occurred on the road in 2026. The visit to the French capital saw Liverpool suffer a fourth consecutive away defeat for the first time since 2010, which has to be a concern. Their remaining Premier League away fixtures are at fierce rivals Everton, Manchester United and Aston Villa, all of which will be crucial in the top five race.
The biggest positive from mid-week was the return of Alexander Isak, featuring for the first time since suffering a broken leg in the act of scoring at Tottenham just before Christmas. However, he is going to have to get up to speed very quickly to solve Liverpool's attacking issues, starting against Fulham at Anfield on Saturday.