Liverpool Feel Unbalanced and Short of Answers
Concerns are growing that Liverpool's squad is poorly balanced, with key roles unclear and the style not matching the players. The fear is that fixing it will take a major rebuild.
Looking down the list of first-team players, it really hits home how much work feels needed, and how many decisions under Slot, Hughes and Edwards have left us looking a bit all over the place.
For me, the biggest issue is balance. The squad does not look built on a solid foundation, and the way we are being coached is not bringing the best out of what is there. It feels lethargic at times, and the style looks counter intuitive for this group, to the point it has turned a lot of the fanbase against the manager.
Style, training and a lack of threat in behind
Training and style can be improved with a new manager and coaching staff, and with a philosophy that better fits the players we have. Right now, it looks like we are too easy to defend against because we do not threaten the space behind often enough.
I am not Wirtz's biggest fan, but even then, if you want to maximise what he can do you need runners making aggressive moves beyond him. Instead, too often we get players coming towards the ball, and you see it with Salah and Gakpo. Without that penetration, opponents can sit in, watch us pass in front of them, and cover the direct pass without much stress.
Structural problems across the side
In terms of team composition, nothing really fits. Both full-backs are offensive orientated, and I do not think Konate and Van Dijk are comfortable when they are isolated. That then feeds into full-backs being asked to stay in more, which defeats the point of what they were brought in to do.
At number six, it feels non-existent. Grav no longer plays it and stays high, despite being YPOTY last season for his performances there. Then there is Macca, who for me has been the worst performer but keeps playing. Whether he is saving himself for the World Cup or his legs have gone, it is a big problem in the middle of the pitch.
Wide areas and what next season might look like
Out wide, Salah looks a shell of his former self. I love and appreciate what he has done, but I do not see him as a dynamic option anymore, and I think he has become a hindrance. On the other side, with Gakpo, everyone knows what is coming when he receives it, to the point it is a meme. If he keeps doing the same thing regardless of the better option, it comes across as individual before team.
Looking ahead, I have questions all over the squad. GK: Alisson (although could leave) and Giorgi Mamamrdashvilli. RB: Bradley (I would sell at the first opportunity) and Frimpong (who, in my view, is not even being used there with Szobo filling in more often). CB: Van Dijk, Konate (hopefully not), Leoni, Jacquet and Gomez. LB: Kerkez and Tsimikas (I would sell, but could see him kept as a break-glass option).
In midfield: Grav, Macca (I would sell), Jones (decent squad option but might want more), Szobo, Endo (will leave) and Nyoni (loan, possibly even a sale). I think we need two midfield signings, one of them defensive minded to add balance and a bit of snap.
Up front, I have no idea what happens at RW with Salah leaving. It feels like we would need a starter, and then you are asking who the back-up even is. At LW: Gakpo (hopefully not), Chiesa (sold or loaned), and Rio (I would loan him so he plays). At striker: Isak and Ekitike, but I have doubts about both. Isak, for me, lacks the physicality and will always break down, and Ekitike's fitness does not look good enough if he is gassed after 60 minutes.
When you add it up, it is a huge shopping list: goalkeeper depending on Alisson, a first-choice right-back, a centre-back, maybe a back-up left-back, two midfielders, a starting right winger (possibly two), and a starting left winger. If we are also facing the possibility of not finishing in the Champions League places, I just cannot see how it all gets done cleanly.
That is why I fear a bumpy ride. It feels like an entire year to assess things has ended in ripping up Klopp's work, with too much change too soon and not enough thought about how individuals fit Slot's system. People talk about Xabi as the answer, but I am not convinced, and the truth is the options in world football for managers feel thin.
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