LIVERPOOL’S 3-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest at Anfield has left the club on the cusp of one of the worst Premier League title defences in history.
The Reds are now the not so proud new owners of a raft of Premier League records after their latest defeat – their sixth this season after just 12 games.
According to Opta, Liverpool have lost back-to-back league games by a margin of three goals or more for the first time since April 1965 under Bill Shankly.
Boss Arne Slot was hoping the tide was turning after defeating Aston Villa 2-0 and then Real Madrid 1-0 in the Champions League, but the international break appears to have done them no favours.
The Dutchman was hailed for his impact last season where his side quite easily won the Premier League title despite making no summer signings.
This summer, the club spent around £450million on new recruits – including two players worth over £100m each – but the regression has been impossible to ignore.
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Neither Florian Wirtz or Alexander Isak – the two £100m+ players in question – are yet to register a single goal or assist.
In fact, Isak is the first Liverpool player in Premier League history to end on the losing side in each of his first four starts for the club.
Much has been made of how fit the Swede actually is after missing the bulk of pre-season by going on strike at Newcastle to get his desired move to Anfield.
But he is not alone in his struggles. The Reds only lost four times the whole of last season and had the second best defence in the league.
They’ve shipped 20 goals in their first 12 games this term – just under half the 41 goals they conceded en route to the title las year – and only three clubs have conceded more.
They sit eight points behind Arsenal having played a game more down in 11th. A title charge seems unlikely.
Liverpool are just the fourth side to start a season as defending champions in the Premier League with six or more defeats in their first 12 games, after Blackburn Rovers in 1995-96 (six), Chelsea in 2015-16 (seven), and Leicester City in 2016-17 (six).
There’s not many excuses in the way of injuries or suspensions, either.
Mohamed Salah‘s form this season has been scrutinised for not hitting the insane heights he reached last season that led to him winning PFA Players’ Player of the Year.
He has four goals in 11 games, but the lack of support from Wirtz and Isak has been far more alarming.
Also worth noting the loss of Trent Alexander-Arnold has stung far more than Liverpool fans would probably like to admit.
The right-back was one of the team’s chief creators during his nine-years with his boyhood club and whilst his defensive capabilties were criticised ad naseum, Slot’s men have failed to replace what he brought to the team going forward.
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The electric Jeremie Frimpong was supposed to be the answer, but Dominik Szoboszlai played right-back again during the heavy Forest defeat.
The Reds are on the wrong side of history so far this season. Slot needs something to change and fast before pressure ramps up on his position.
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