🔗 Share this article

Now is the moment to start judging Alexander Isak fairly as a £125 million Liverpool centre forward, Arne Slot remarked on Friday. As such, evaluation needs to be severe, but as the UK's highest-priced footballer was seated alongside Mohamed Salah on the Reds substitutes while the English top-flight champions struggled to secure an leveler versus Manchester United in their absence, it was not the manager's underperforming attack that deserved the strongest blame at the stadium. His defence has vanished.

Anonymous Performance from Key Forwards

Yes, the Swedish striker was largely quiet in the No 9 role and the Egyptian winger disappointing again as his personal struggles persisted versus the club he typically scores against. The Swedish player had his initial attempt on goal in the Premier League as a Reds member in the first half, excellently denied by the opposition's new shot-stopper the young keeper. The forward missed a excellent second-half opportunity facing the Kop and neither complain when their substitution came up. Cody Gakpo also hit the woodwork three times and somehow failed to net a second moments after Harry Maguire’s decisive goal.

Unthinkable Defeat In Spite of Opportunities

It seemed unthinkable for Liverpool to lose a match in which they created so many chances, the manager stated. But it is not impossible with a defence in this form, as one opponent, Chelsea and now Manchester United have demonstrated.

Backline Breakdown Under Pressure

While overseeing a fourth straight defeat as Liverpool head coach, the first person to achieve this since Brendan Rodgers in November 2014, the coach must have been frustrated at a defensive performance that invited United to take the initiative as well as their initial win at Anfield since January 2016. Littered with the same mistakes that Liverpool’s coaching staff had focused on fixing following the pause, including another dead-ball score, it was a display that completely derailed the champions’ after halftime comeback and cost them the match.

Advantage Squandered Even with Uptick

Momentum was at last with the home side when the substitute equalized the forward's early breakthrough. Liverpool could feel one more last-minute victory with replacements Hugo Ekitiké, a midfielder and another forward igniting progress and the opposition in defensive mode. Instead, it was a further last-gasp top-flight loss, the third straight, after the team's set-piece frailties resurfaced and Maguire found himself among several opposition players unmarked behind the centre-back in the closing stages.

Organized Opposition Outperform

A powerful header into the goal that Maguire blazed over in the dying seconds of last season’s tie gave Ruben Amorim the best win of his challenging club reign. For all the criticism surrounding the coach it was his squad that performed with definite plan and a well-executed approach for the bulk of a thrilling contest. The first consecutive league victories of the manager's reign were the outcome. The Liverpool team once more looked like strangers at points, especially when allowing a set-piece goal for the fifth occasion in the Premier League this season.

Quick Opener Reveals Defensive Issues

Liverpool were lacking from the inception to the execution of the attacker's 62-second first goal. There was little impact on the first attempt from the captain, a probable result of having to go through two players to connect with the ball, admittedly, and little challenge on Bruno Fernandes when he received the ball and passed to the winger in open area on the right. Milos Kerkez was late to react, Van Dijk delayed to recover and follow Mbeumo’s movement while Giorgi Mamardashvili, filling in for the injured first-choice keeper in net, was easily beaten from the position.

Refereeing and Focus Issues

The manager could justifiably point to his head and ask why the foul was from the referee, an referee with whom he has a contentious past, but also doubt the focus and communication levels his backline. Mbeumo’s goal means the side have managed only two clean sheets in 12 matches so far, the last coming eight games previously at Burnley.

Repeated Exploitation of Left Flank

United exposed Liverpool’s left flank repeatedly in a first half in which the midfielder, another player and even the attacker all nearly scored to increasing the away team's lead. Releasing the winger early against Kerkez was obviously in the manager's gameplan. It succeeded time and again in the first half. The £40m new arrival from Bournemouth experienced a further difficult evening in a Liverpool jersey. Throw-ins were also a problem for Andy Robertson’s replacement, who almost put the forward through while making an interception. The defender and Van Dijk appear on not in sync at present.

Manager’s Explanation and Acknowledgment

“Our approach involves a lot of risks,” the head coach commented after United’s victory. “Following the 62nd minute we had multiple attacking members on the pitch. That’s perhaps why our organization for the set-piece was not as perfect as we typically are. Normally we would have more defensive players on the pitch. Perhaps it is a fluke but it is not an excuse. We know we have to do better.”