Our Liverpool FC fans' jury deliver their first verdict of 2026 on the back of the disappointing 0-0 home draw with Leeds United in the Premier League
LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND - JANUARY 01: Arne Slot, Manager of Liverpool, reacts during the Premier League match between Liverpool and Leeds United at Anfield on January 01, 2026 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images)
Arne Slot reacts during the Premier League match between Liverpool and Leeds United at Anfield on January 01, 2026
View Image
Liverpool will be looking to truly kickstart 2026 when they visit Fulham on Sunday. While the 0-0 draw at home to Leeds United on Thursday stretched the Reds' unbeaten run to eight matches, there was little celebrating on the pitch or in the stands.
Indeed the Anfield stalemate raised more questions than answers over the Premier League defending champions, who missed the chance to strengthen their grip on a top-four spot.
Champions League qualification will be the very least of Liverpool's ambitions for the reminder of the campaign, but with a seventh European Cup and ninth FA Cup to aim for, there is still plenty of life left in the season.
And it's against that backdrop that our Reds fans' jury return to deliver their first verdicts of the New Year.
Andrew Cullen
We used to be tigers under Jurgen Klopp: ferocious in our pressing and ruthless in our finishing. Under Arne Slot this year, we are like lambs: mild in our pressing and meek in our finishing.
We have steadied what felt like a sinking ship with several positive results, but when you examine the result against Leeds, it was a draw, at home, against a newly promoted side, in a game where Liverpool did not manage to conjure very much. In fact, we could have lost the game if it wasn’t for a tight offside decision.
The troubling and vexing question that continues to linger is why do we look like an average, soft team when we were so formidable last year? New players, transition, and tragedy perhaps all have a role in the explanation.
It was pleasing to see our attacking players try to take on the opposition on Thursday evening - there were a couple of occasions when Jeremie Frimpong, Hugo Ekitike and Florian Wirtz tried to wriggle past players, which was progress of a kind, but you need your big players to have a more consistent, prolonged impact on games, rather than flashes which fade. After all, you pay the big money for the big moments. Far too often we are getting flat, insipid performances.
It’s a new year and there will be new hope. A top-four finish and a competitive performance in the Champions League will be on the wish list.
James Noble
Happy New Year, Reds! Granted, Thursday’s 0-0 Anfield draw with Leeds United was hardly the most invigorating or encouraging start to 2026. It wasn’t devoid of upsides – Rio Ngumoha and, again, Jeremie Frimpong offered promise, and Liverpool get to take to the field again, hopefully in more effective fashion, as soon as this Sunday.
That fixture at Fulham – a tough looking one, in itself – may well take a different, slightly more expansive, shape. It’s the first of two big back-to-back Premier League games in London, of course, with next Thursday’s trip to leaders Arsenal also coming swiftly into view.
If we are to get positive results in either, an uptick in performance levels looks necessary. Our current eight-match unbeaten run has built certain foundations, including a level of solidity. That is something, but it’s simultaneously clear that elements of verve too often and easily make way for bluntness and passivity. There has been verve – the first half against Wolverhampton Wanderers, for instance – we just need a tad more.
Such patterns are somewhat unsurprising, particularly given where we were in late November. The broader trajectory over the last month has been upward. The Leeds stalemate quietly reflected that but, more loudly, showcased the ongoing need for improvement. Fourth place at the halfway stage is something to build on, let’s hope Sunday brings more evidence of headway.
Rhys Buchanan
Though our performances have been anything but convincing over the festive period, the Reds' points tally and unbeaten run certainly gave me a spring in my step heading up to Anfield on a chilly New Year's Day. Any sense of excitement was quickly replaced by frustration as yet again I arrived to ridiculously large queues and a chaotic queuing system which meant a 45-minute wait to get into the ground minutes before kick-off.
With a lot of talk around a lack of atmosphere and energy from within the crowd post-match, you can't help but feel leaving fans outside in the freezing cold and taking away from vital matchday rituals and routines is only a contributing factor.
That's before we get onto matters on the pitch which offered very little to get excited about. Ultimately, it was an exhausting watch at times with Liverpool clearly needing a bit of luck or spark to ignite things.
Though there were very few positives to take from the showing that lacked bravery and fighting spirit, the Reds have a chance to quickly put things right come Sunday and strengthen our position in the top four.