We asked you for your burning questions on the goings on at Anfield, and Chief Liverpool FC correspondent Ian Doyle has provided the answers
Liverpool head coach Arne Slot with Xabi Alonso
Liverpool head coach Arne Slot with Xabi Alonso
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The transfer window may be shut but Liverpool's season still continues. And while it hasn't panned out quite as supporters would have hoped so far, Arne Slot's side still have plenty to play for between now and the end of May.
Champions League qualification may be the priority but the Reds will be keen on making inroads in this campaign's competition while also progressing in the FA Cup, with a fourth-round clash at home to Brighton to come in less than a fortnight.
We have been asking for your questions on the current state of play at Anfield, and here we take a punt at providing some answers.
Ste asks: It’s easy to go off social media and the hysteria on there but what is the mood from the players when they’re asked about Arne Slot and this season’s performances?
With the notable exception of Mohamed Salah - who is usually an exception for more positive reasons - there hasn't been any show of public dissent against Slot, and even then the Egyptian swiftly backed down somewhat behind the scenes. Speaking to the players, they simply regard the criticism of Slot as part of the job, especially as Liverpool have underperformed this season. Don't forget, a lot of them won the Premier League title under the Dutchman - they aren't going to suddenly lose faith in him because of some iffy results for which they were also responsible.Lavet asks: Why do we always wait until the last few days of the transfer window to do business? Moreover, spending millions of pounds does not guarantee future success. Why can’t we adopt an approach like Barcelona’s - one that focuses on building a strong academy and identifying young talent around the world?
Alexander Isak may have been a late one in September but otherwise much of Liverpool's business was done way earlier in the summer as Slot, similar to predecessor Jurgen Klopp, wanted more time to spend with them during pre-season on the training pitch. Deals can be complicated, though, so that isn't always possible.
Barcelona have a great academy but they are aided by location. In the North West of England alone, Liverpool are having to compete for youngsters with Manchester United, Manchester City and Everton. There isn't really an issue for the Catalans, who are a much bigger club than neighbours Espanyol. Plus it's not like they don't spend a lot of money on players. Doing that is what got them into their recent financial predicament in the first place.
Liverpool are keen to improve their Academy and are aware the step up in standard among the first team means they must increase the quality of potential player across the board. That's not straightforward, though. Sometimes it can come down to investment in the Academy - and the Reds can't compete with City in that regard, for example.
Nick Harverson asks: Fulham 90+7; Leeds 90+6; Bournemouth 90+5; Palace 90+7; Chelsea 90+6; PSV 90+2. What does this say about our mentality and leadership?
You can't really count the PSV late goal in that list as the game was long lost at that point. The others are more troublesome. But no club in Premier League history has scored more injury-time goals than the Reds, and they have nine themselves this season in all competitions. There's more likelihood of late goals in recent years, of course, given the growing extension of the additional period.
The only real worries in terms of leadership and mentality came with the defeats to Nottingham Forest and PSV Eindhoven, which were atrocious. Since then Liverpool have lost only lost one of 16 in all competitions. That suggests they have regained some steel.Mark asks: Liverpool are currently short on homegrown players - will they keep this in mind when looking to sign players in the summer transfer window?
Liverpool are extremely mindful of the fact they allowed a large number of what are deemed homegrown players leave last summer. It's a balance that will have to be addressed sooner rather than later. But as we have long known, buying homegrown, and particularly English, players comes at a premium. It will be a question of whether the players are worth that extra cost. And it also underlines the importance of the Academy to bring through your own talent.DB1982 asks: Can you see Alexander Isak playing up front with Hugo Ekitike when he's fit?
Yes. In fact, they already have at Eintracht Frankfurt this season when Isak had to go off injured at half-time. Ekitike has shown himself capable of playing in a number of positions along the forward line and works well with another player alongside him. Liverpool hope the more options the better in attack, and pairing Isak with Ekitike is most definitely one of them.Charles Bimpong asks: Why aren’t Rio Ngumoha and Ferderico Chiesa getting more minutes?
Rio Ngumoha is 17 years of age and has already had more than 300 minutes in the Liverpool first team this season. For comparison, that's more than Tyler Morton managed last season. Ngumoha would probably have had greater exposure if the Reds had been comfortably winning games more often, but there has been little appetite to expose the youngster to the troubles of the autumn.
Chiesa has already had more minutes this season than the entirety of his last campaign, but his below-par performances as a starter suggest he's best used as an impact substitute.Adjetey Sowah asks: I just want to know whether Liverpool have really contacted Xabi Alonso to be at the helm of affairs should Arne Slot be sacked?
Well, this one is an easy one. There's no suggestion Slot is in danger of being sacked any time soon, so there'd be no reason to contact Xabi Alonso. Liverpool did sound out the availability of the Spaniard early on in their hunt for a successor to Jurgen Klopp two years ago but it became clear very early on that Alonso had no plans to leave Bayer Leverkusen that summer, so any interest never really became serious.
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