We’re still watching a work in progress
Maybe less of learning, more of a confirmation. We’ve watched Liverpool in all competitions since August, and this squad has been described as ‘in transition’ or ‘settling in’ more than anything else.
Those rumors aren’t going to immediately dissipate after one result, but it’s a good sign of what things can look like when we start to get it right.
It’s almost like we’re watching Arne Slot work it out in real time. Naturally, we aren’t seeing behind the closed doors of the AXA training facility, but Slot’s trying something a little different every time in actual games to test the waters.
Wednesday's was to drop Salah, Kerkez, and Macca. Hardly surprising emissions given the recent form of all three, but the most surprising was not turning to Salah when Isak had to be pulled early due to a suspected injury.
Slot is trying to find what works best for the squad, not the individual, and with that mentality, some difficult decisions might need to be made regarding his regular starters of last season.
We’re still defensively shaky and still struggle with our positioning at times, but it’s nice to know we’re still able to control games.
Now, don’t get me wrong, we’ve just beat a team whose defending is even worse than ours, but it would be foolish not to take positives.
The real impact comes in chaining results together. This 5-1 victory away in the Champions League doesn’t mean much if Brentford put 3 past us on the weekend.
Curtis Jones just played his way into our starting eleven
Jones was given about 30 minutes against United on the weekend and looked solid and reliable. Those 90 minutes against Frankfurt just showed that he can be both of those things alongside progressive, clinical, and smooth.
I can’t remember a time when he gave the ball away cheaply and was always looking to drag us forward when given the chance.
He’s been guilty in the past of being pedestrian and only looking sideways and backward, but there was no sign of that here.
When he got the ball facing downfield, you expected something to happen. When he got the ball facing our back 4, you weren’t worried about his giving it away.
I’m not sure how Slot can look at that performance and decide to drop him for the weekend. Based on how we lined up, we aren’t giving much opportunity to the lads who are struggling for form, and rightly so.
Start your players who you know will perform, and allow the rest to continue to prove their worth on the training ground and off the bench.
Whilst Jones has played his way into the starting eleven, Salah looks like he’s playing his way out of it.
Salah’s Selfishness
I don’t want to spend too much time on this one, as this is not an attack on Salah’s ability. His selfish trait isn’t a brand-new notion that has just been created.
He’s frustrated his attacking partners in the past from Sadio Mane to Bobby Firmino to Nunez. The only difference back then was that there was more often than not an end product to it. We aren’t seeing that as much this season.
What I saw on Wednesday was a team that attacked together and were always looking to play someone in or recycle it sharply to find an opening. When Salah came on and got the ball, there was none of that.
It ties into my previous point of Slot picking his line-up for the benefit of the team, and at the moment, and as it’s been showcased in our recent history, Salah might not fit that bill.
Had he picked his head up in the dying minutes of the game, Florian Wirtz would have recorded his first Liverpool goal. Sadly, we’re now flirting with the idea that we might not have to start Salah to be successful, a weird thought indeed.
But I will tell you who we do need for success this season.
Hugo Ekitike is our best attacker
Hands down. Pace, intelligence, movement, confidence, finishing. Hugo has ticked most of those boxes, if not all, every time he has pulled a Liverpool shirt on.
He seems to be involved in every attack we have and pops up all over the front line. He knows when to be aggressive and when to be deft.
A wonderfully balanced player who we should be thinking of forming some kind of system around.
When he was sent clean through for our equalizer, I never had a doubt. The power to get away, the intelligence to cut the defender off, the poise to finish in his old stomping ground. He’s everything we wanted Nunez to be, so let’s utilize him every single week.
Slot has a bit of a pickle on his hands, and we get to watch him trial and error it until it clicks. It’s been a rough few weeks, but it really feels good to win again.
Let’s just hope it's the boost everybody needs and we don’t undo all of our hard work on Saturday night.