Liverpool were beaten on three fronts by Manchester City.
City battered them, first and foremost. From their creeping press to cut off passing lanes when Ibrahima Konate had the ball, to Jeremy Doku not giving Conor Bradley, or anybody who rushed to his aid, a moment’s peace, they executed their gameplan perfectly.
As a team that tends to get more positive and confident in their football as the season goes on, they are certainly back in title contention now.
The second front Liverpool were beaten on was by themselves.
It felt a little like they were satisfied with how they sat off Real Madrid at times last week to keep their shape and decided to replicate it against City, forgetting that the reason they could be a little more passive on the European stage was that they had earned the right to play after a fast start.
The defeat at Etihad Stadium saw no fast start. Arne Slot’s side got more and more passive as the first half went on, with the game fading further and further away from them, so they were there for the taking and deserved a two-goal deficit at half-time.
It was a disappointing climbdown from what had been a really purposeful week up until kick-off on Sunday.
The third front Liverpool were beaten on was in the margins. In truth, the Reds created their own bad luck – Virgil van Dijk’s outstretched foot that deflected the second goal past Giorgi Mamardashvili was a perfect symbol of their half-hearted attempts to keep City at bay.
Slot and his team may feel they are watching a lot of VAR decisions made in grey areas of the rulebook go against them right now, but if you earn your right to play a game and take it to a team, you can reverse those margins in your favour – as both Manchester City and Brentford have found at our expense recently.
All is not lost for Liverpool’s season, but a title challenge feels so far beyond the realms of possibility right now.
The talent is clearly there, but Slot needs to find a way to have his team ready to sustain a consistent attack on the trophies and qualification stakes that remain.
Find a way. Sustain consistency. Attack.
Earn the right to play, Liverpool. The rest will take care of itself.
Find more from Josh Sexton on outlets including The Anfield Wrap
