Drop Gomez and 4 more ways Klopp can fix this Liverpool mess
It has been a month of false dawns for Liverpool.
The Reds started the month with a 3-3 draw with Brighton, a result that forced manager Jurgen Klopp to take action as he moved away from the 4-3-3 formation, a shape he had almost exclusively used since moving to Merseyside in 2015.
A 4-2-4 was deployed and the signs were encouraging during the 2-0 win over Rangers. The Reds looked sharp against Arsenal, especially in the first half, until Luis Diaz hobbled off and Bukayo Saka scored the winner via the penalty spot.
Rangers were then mauled with Mohamed Salah scoring a six-minute hat-trick after coming off the bench to replace Darwin Nunez as one of the two centre-forwards. He then scored the winner against Manchester City after Klopp made the bold call to start him alongside Roberto Firmino centrally.
Liverpool made it back-to-back wins in the Premier League for only the second time this season after Darwin netted in the 1-0 win over West Ham. With favourable games to come, it felt like this would be an opportunity for the Reds to finally kickstart their season.
It wasn’t to be. Klopp watched his team lose consecutive matches to Nottingham Forest and Leeds United. Both teams went into the match against Liverpool without wins since August. Sandwiched between those defeats was a 3-0 win against Ajax in Amsterdam, a game in which a new shape was used. The diamond system wasn’t perfect, but it showed glimpses of potential and it was the only way the German tactician could get key players into roles they are comfortable in.
Yet at Anfield on Saturday, it was apparent the team weren’t familiar with this shape. So what can be done to get this season back on track for Liverpool?
Defensive changes
Joe Gomez put in a Man-of-the-Match performance against Manchester City earlier in the month. If he could play to that level all of the time, it would be near impossible to displace him as the starter alongside Virgil van Dijk.
Unfortunately for Liverpool, Gomez has been unable to play at that level consistently. In fact, he’s had a significant role in both losses. He was needlessly caught in possession against Forest and had to foul Taiwo Awoniyi to prevent the counter-attacker. The hosts then scored from the resulting free-kick.
Against Leeds, his blind pass back to Alisson wasn’t anywhere near the Brazilian keeper. The slip didn’t help the situation, but it was a reckless pass and one that Leeds were able to exploit to take the lead.
It was Gomez who fouled Jarrod Bowen in the penalty area too. Alisson spared his blushes that time with the save from the spot, but the England international now has three high-profile mistakes in three matches.
Ibrahima Konate is once again back fit. He’s been on the bench for the last two matches and he should come in for the game against Tottenham with Gomez dropping out of the starting XI.
Control the play
In his post-match interview, Klopp highlighted Liverpool’s struggles in possession against Leeds.
"Scored an equaliser, but it didn't give us the complete security back for whatever reason, we struggled with controlling the game obviously which is difficult with the speed they have up front. We gave too many balls away."
The Reds seem to be looking for the killer pass in behind all of the time and it just isn’t paying off. They are then caught in transition and there are huge gaps to fill, something they just aren’t doing very well.
In the defeat on Saturday, Harvey Elliott completed just 71% of his attempted passes. For context, his season average is 83.5%. Salah was another one who struggled to find a teammate at Anfield, completing just 67.7% of his attempts, down on his 77.4% average for the term. Curtis Jones replaced Elliott and seemed to struggle too, finishing the game having completed just 64.7% of his attempts.
If players are sloppy on the ball, it is impossible to control the game.
Make some uncomfortable decisions
The 4-2-4 shape gave Liverpool a solid base. Klopp was forced into moving away from it after injuries to Diaz and Jota. But this didn’t necessarily have to be the case.
The Reds could’ve used one of Firmino, Jones, Fabio Carvalho, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain or even Darwin on the left. The right-sided position could’ve been filled by Elliott, Jones, Salah or Oxlade-Chamberlain.
Klopp didn’t have to move to a diamond.
He said it gets players into roles they’re comfortable with, but the onus is often on the Reds to attack, so it just gives players more ground to cover during transitions. So, for example, Thiago is having to cover the left-wing, which then leaves Fabinho, the defensive midfielder, with more space centrally and he’s never excelled in large areas.
Liverpool have never been about short-term fixes, so why now?
Practice what you preach
In post-match interviews recently, Klopp has mentioned how the team need to go back to basics. They need to be more solid, more compact and difficult to break down.
Yet if you watch them, they are the complete opposite.
In fact, across their last three Premier League outings, the opposition have had a higher Expected Goals haul. Yes, West Ham, Nottingham Forest and Leeds United, as a collective, created better chances than the Reds did in those matches.
Multiple models have the Expected Goals Against tally for those three matches at around six. The Reds managed to keep a clean sheet against Ajax, but they had a lot of luck. Steven Berghuis hit the post inside three minutes and a last-gasp Alexander-Arnold block stopped Dusan Tadic from opening the scoring.
Liverpool are anything but solid right now.
Use the squad a little better
Klopp’s hands have been tied recently due to injuries, but some of his substitutes have been odd, to say the least. With the score level against Leeds, he brought on James Milner, Jordan Henderson and Curtis Jones. These are subs you make when you’re looking to see a game out, they aren’t the sort you make when you’re looking for a winner. He kept Carvalho and Oxlade-Chamberlain on the bench, two players who could’ve had an impact on the final third.
You can understand the triple sub, Elliott, Fabinho and Alexander-Arnold need their minutes managed. But five subs are allowed, there’s no real reason to keep goal threats on the bench when a game is there to be won. Give players with a point to prove an opportunity and something might happen.
