Arne Slot prides himself on wanting to play attacking, end-to-end football, but Liverpool have not done that this season.
Slot’s obsession with PSG is a little worrying, with the Dutchman continuing to speak about their two meetings last term, given the open nature of the matches.
This season has seen Liverpool fail to replicate that, something the manager keeps commenting on, including this week.
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Prove me wrong: Liverpool DID NOT turn a corner with 0-0 draw against Arsenal
Even Slot admitted the performance was similar to recent weeks when he and the team were being slated…
Arne Slot after Arsenal v Liverpool - Premier League
Credit: Marc Atkins/Getty Images
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He said: “I’ve said many times that I found our games against Paris Saint-Germain a joy to watch. So then compare maybe these two games [Fulham] with each other and then ask yourself why is one game a joy to watch and the other is harder to watch?”
How much of that is down to the way the Reds’ opponents are playing and their change in style is hard to tell, but the stats show a clear drop in Liverpool’s threat in the final third this season.
Liverpool attacking stats under Arne Slot
As per BBC Sport, Liverpool had an xG of 2.4, scored 2.3 goals, had 20.8 shots and 7.3 shots on target per game in Jurgen Klopp’s final campaign at Anfield.
When Slot arrived, he was largely able to keep that output the same en route to the Premier League title.
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2024/25 saw Liverpool score 2.2 goals, have an xG of 2.2, manage 17.1 shots and 6.1 on target per 90.
A small decline, yes, but the current season is where the numbers have really dropped off.
The Merseyside outfit are now managing 1.5 goals a game, have an xG of 1.5, 14.7 shots a match and just four shots on target, which is nearly half of what the team were doing under Jurgen Klopp.
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Conor Bradley and Leandro Trossard during Arsenal v Liverpool - Premier League
Credit: Marc Atkins/Getty Images
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Arne Slot change hampered Liverpool
There are a number of contributing factors to the decline in 2025/26.
Trent Alexander-Arnold’s transfer to Real Madrid greatly reduced Liverpool’s threat from the right.
Summer additions like Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz have had injury issues and took some time to get up to speed.
But it seems obvious that Slot’s change of system, made last year during a run of nine defeats in 12, is the biggest reason for the decline.
Liverpool were conceding far too many goals and to stop that, the Dutchman has his team playing much more conservative football, as we saw against Arsenal when left-winger Cody Gakpo was dropping very deep to act as a makeshift centre-back at times.
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