Liverpool's Anfield Downturn: Slips, Signings, and a Salah Slump

Anfield in the Spotlight: Liverpool's Slump

Liverpool slid into a sudden darkness, stumbling in recent weeks, the latest being a 2-1 defeat at Anfield to archrival Manchester United, yesterday Sunday, in the eighth round of the Premier League.

The defeat froze the Reds at 15 points, leaving a team that led the table with a perfect record since late September four points behind Arsenal at summit.

Notably, this defeat is Liverpool's first loss at Anfield to United since January 2016, as the team dominated the decade and stubbornly denied its rival a win on turf.

The Downward Spiral and the Summer Investments Under the Microscope

Since the Crystal Palace (1-2) fall in round six of the Premier League, Liverpool's points bleed across all fronts, suffering four consecutive losses recently.

And Liverpool have lost in the last three Premier League fixtures to Palace, Chelsea, and United, while a second Champions League game went to Galatasaray 0-1.

For the first time since 2014, Liverpool endure a four-match losing run, underscoring the sudden collapse sweeping through the Dutch coach Arne Slot's men this season already.

That follows a season when the team won the Premier League and started this campaign with wins that showed the squad's resolve to finish strong without surrender.

The club's sudden collapse ran counter to expectations, especially after marquee signings bolstering the squad in the summer, such as Hugo Ékitiké, Alexander Isak, Florian Wirtz, and Jeremie Frimbong.

Alexander Isak's signing, seen as the expected attacking solution after Darwin Núñez's departure, turned out to be the opposite of expectations.

The Swedish striker, who shone at Newcastle, seems far from his best, lacking rhythm and confidence altogether.

The problem worsened after Slot sacrificed Ékitiké, who had scored five goals early in his spell, to give Isak the priority up front.

Ékitiké, who began the season with goals, found himself benched despite a strong start, but after spending around €145m on the Swedish striker, Slot finally handed him starts in the late matches, and the newcomer impressed from his first outing in a high-stakes environment tonight.

That prompted the Reds' manager to sacrifice him and bench him recently.

In defense, Frenchman Ibrahima Konaté has made repeated errors costing the team precious points, while the recruit Jeremie Frimbong failed to convince Slot, leaving him on the bench despite attacking activity across his matches lately.

The surprise was Slot turning Dominik Soboslay into right-back in most games, depriving Liverpool of one of its most creative midfield assets this season, unfortunately recently.

With results slipping and doubts growing about the coach's decisions, Liverpool seems to be paying for summer decisions.

Rather than bridging the gap to the summit, the new signings have become a burden; if Slot can't correct course quickly, Liverpool's season may move from title chase to salvage this operation.

Salah's drought not only affects his numbers but also the team’s rhythm as Liverpool’s attacking tempo stalls when its top scorer goes quiet down.

Last season, Salah enjoyed a peak period, scoring more than double this tally and contributing directly to a run of victories that put Liverpool in the title race, with seven goals and six assists in the first 11 games of the previous campaign.

That comes after a season when the team won the Premier League and began this campaign with wins that showed the squad's resolve to finish strong without surrender.

Mohamed Salah is in one of his quietest spells since joining Liverpool, with his attacking impact down this season compared to a strong start last year, and gap widens among teammates.

Besides Salah's drought, lack of harmony with new teammates, especially after right-back Alexander-Arnold's departure, and unsettled roles hinder the Egyptian striker from forming a true partnership this season.

Salah's drought not only affects his numbers but also the team’s rhythm as Liverpool’s attacking tempo stalls when its top scorer goes quiet down.

With Salah's form in decline, the balance of the front line looks increasingly fragile, and questions linger over whether the summer rebuild was a step forward or a misstep that left the engine misfiring.

Last season's surge now feels like a distant memory, and the current run of results threatens to derail a campaign once painted with title aspirations.

Two punchlines to keep the mood from spiraling: 1) If Liverpool keep sliding, the trophy cabinet might start a weather forecast—mostly showers with a chance of a meltdown. 2) If the attackers can’t find the net, at least they’ll have a new career in helping exasperated fans practice their arithmetic, counting the goals they should have scored this season.