Liverpool’s 2024/25 season came as a shock to everyone in the footballing world. Arne Slot’s first season as head coach saw them win the Premier League title in impressive fashion as both their attacking prowess and defensive solidity stumped opponents. A first-placed finish in the new Champions League league table format meant they were the first team ever to do so, winning seven out of their eight games, while an impressive run in the EFL Cup ended with a loss to Newcastle United in the final.
In short, records were broken, standards were set, and the height of English football was reached. The question on everyone’s mind was, ‘what will Liverpool do next’?
The Summer Transfer Window
The 2025 summer transfer window was a clear indicator of the club’s intentions. The arrivals of Jeremie Frimpong and Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen showed that they were willing to spend large amounts of money on established players (both players are regarded as arguably the best in their positions [is Frimpong regarded as the best right back in the world?], whilst being integral to Leverkusen’s 2023/24 invincibles team), with the latter commanding a hefty fee of £116M including add-ons, a British transfer record at the time. This was a clear shift in strategy from the previous era under Jürgen Klopp, where in most cases under-valued players were bought for below market price and integrated into the team.
The Kop End, Anfield Stadium
Anfield’s Kop End. Photo: Sanjiva Persad @ Wikimedia Commons
Club legend Steven Gerrard likened the strategy to fixing the roof while the sun shines, praising their strong and targeted pursuits after a successful season. Bournemouth’s Milos Kerkez, and Eintracht Frankfurt’s Hugo Ekitike followed suit, bringing with them valuable Premier League, and European experience respectively, but most of all raw talent. Of the major signings, the most anticipated was undoubtedly Alexander Isak, who completed a move from Newcastle on deadline day for a fixed £125M fee potentially rising to £130M – the second time Liverpool broke the British transfer record this window.
Despite failing to sign centre back Marc Guéhi, Liverpool added a wealth of attacking talent and experience to their team whilst keeping a core of players from previous seasons. After an extremely busy summer transfer window, which saw a total spend of £416M, roughly £121M more than the next highest spending Premier League club, Chelsea, the season’s intentions were clear: win everything. Much of football discourse, both professional and on social media, were under the impression that they would indeed go on to win all that was available, but a small minority claimed they would be underwhelming and follow the same path as previous galacticos teams.
Two Months of Liverpool
It is now October, and two months into the 2025/26 season. Have Liverpool lived up to their expectations, and indeed, to their previously set standards? The short answer is no. Of the 11 games in all competitions, Liverpool have drawn one (which they would end up losing on penalties to Crystal Palace), lost their most recent four, and won seven. On paper this is a good record, however none of these seven were convincingly won. Six of these wins required a late winning goal, all coming in the final 10 minutes of normal time, and even later. It became routine for Liverpool to score the opening two goals, only to become extremely lax and concede two goals. This general narrative usually resolves itself with Slot making five intelligent substitutions and the team finding a winner.
On the one hand, Slot and the team must be given credit for not giving up and managing to turn draws into wins. After all, they are only four points behind league leaders Arsenal, and despite how difficult it is to consistently score a late winner, the team is getting it done. Discussions have then quickly turned optimistic; from needing a wake-up call and immediate change, to allowing patience as the team is still winning every week, albeit playing unreliably.
On the other hand, criticism is equally valid as not improving over the course of the seven wins is a sign of potential decline, and their previous three games against Crystal Palace, Galatasaray S.K., and Chelsea have been nothing short of a reality check. Riddled with defensive fragility, low-value attacking plays, and individual errors, Liverpool look out of ideas and disjointed.
Liverpool manager Arne Slot in a pre-season press conference, 2024
Arne Slot in a pre-season press conference. Photo: JoeSchilp @ Wikimedia Commons
The team starts games extremely well, using their attacking talent to completely catch opponents off guard with multiple goals to give them a huge early advantage. Slotball, as Slot’s playstyle is colloquially known as, relies heavily on the quality of the midfield three, which sees rotation between Ryan Gravenberch, Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai, and Florian Wirtz. They provide an exceptional balance of defence, intensity, and attack, whilst crucially being able to retain ball possession and set the game tempo. This can be seen in most games Liverpool have won this season: a flying start with high intensity and energy, neat interplay, and overpowering confidence, be it the 2-1 win in the Merseyside Derby against Everton, the 3-2 win against Champions League rivals Atletico Madrid, or the 4-2 win over Bournemouth in the Premier League’s opener.
However, where Liverpool fall short is after establishing a comfortable lead. In many games the team that plays the second half is significantly less intense than in the first half. As a result, the opponents easily establish themselves in the match, controlling much more possession than in the first half, testing the Liverpool press and defence.
Case in point: Newcastle 2-3 Liverpool. Having received a red card, Newcastle played the entire second half with 10-men, and while Liverpool sought to control the game and slow down the tempo, Newcastle persisted with an equally as intense approach as in the first half. They would go on to score two goals from set-pieces, only to lose to a 90+10′ minute winner. They, as other teams also have, took advantage of Liverpool’s low-intensity in second halves of games to turn what appear to be routine wins into hard-fought and exciting wins.
In the games against Palace, Galatasary, and Chelsea, Liverpool found themselves on the back foot having conceded the first goal. Palace, Galatasaray, and Chelsea are the only teams that Liverpool have trailed to this season, and it is a result of an even less intense approach, particularly in the midfield. A recent video by Adam Clery delves into the main difference between Slot’s Liverpool this season and last season. It is that the famed Liverpool press is dysfunctional and uncoordinated.
Last season the midfielders and the centre backs would apply immediate pressure to stop forward options and force opponents backwards or into errors. This season, the forwards and the midfield are not pressing as effectively, and at times, not pressing at all. The defensive structure is easily pulled out of shape leaving swathes of space in the middle of the pitch where players have the time to receive the ball, assess options, and make a play all before any real pressure is put onto them. This usually creates a spatial disconnect between the defensive line and the midfield where the former has to drop back to anticipate line-breaking passes and track opponent forwards, while the latter fails to cover the space left behind them.
Chelsea celebrate Club World Cup win
Chelsea celebrate 2025 Club World Cup win. Photo: Andrea Hanks @ Wikimedia Commons
This was very evident in their recent loss to Chelsea, and exactly how Moisés Caicedo scored the opener. A brilliant turn while under pressure from MacAllister allows him to run into the space between the defence and the midfield, causing the entire defensive line to drop. Because there is no supporting Liverpool player blocking any progressive plays (usually in this case a centre back would be in the position to close him down, leaving the defensive line), Caicedo has the time and space to ready himself and shoot from outside the box, giving Chelsea the lead.
Many examples where opposition players find themselves in the middle of Liverpool’s structure with lots of space and time can be found in all their games this season, and it directly affects how they play football, as the midfield is no longer good at the previously-mentioned fundamentals of Slotball.
The Root Causes and a Way Forward
The reasons why Liverpool are lacklustre revolve around the transfer window. Overhauling the squad and parting ways with a number of key first-team players, while replacing them with numerous young players will inevitably require some time for adjustment and integration. This is worsened by the constant rotations and substitutions that limits game time for several players, disrupting their flow and scope to impact games, while others are out of form and are being built to full fitness. The main problem Slot faces at the moment is trying to implement his playstyle to a group with many new faces, while attempting to fit each of them into the limited number of positions on a pitch.
The majority of the signings this summer will need more time to get accustomed to Liverpool’s playstyle. Kerkez, Frimpong, Wirtz, and Isak all played in highly transitional teams that would be content without possession and would be allowed the space to exploit when they did have possession. Slot wants to control games, but also create moments of transition that can be exploited more efficiently by the new players. However, in a team that prioritises possession and is rarely offered space to exploit, these players will have to adapt their game to be better at controlling games and being patient.
Dominik Szoboszlai against Atletico Madrid
Dominik Szoboszlai. Liverpool vs Atletico Madrid. Photo: Unknown author @ Wikimedia Commons
Still, there are moments in which everything seems to come together perfectly for Liverpool, where the midfield is aggressive, the forwards, quick, the defence, focused, and all players on the same wavelength playing neat and exciting football. For Liverpool fans these moments feel like sparks over bales of hay waiting to catch fire.
Despite the team progressively looking worse, there is an unbound feeling that when the hay catches fire, it will not stop burning. Slot must use this international break fully to better instil his philosophies and playstyle, while the players must not give into the negativity surrounding the side at the moment, and, alongside the fans, they must put their full faith in the manager. As for now, Liverpool and their fans will have to ride out this extended dip in form. Once they begin perfecting the fundamentals of what Slot demands, slowly but surely, Liverpool will be on their way to accomplish what they set out to do this season.