Liverpool’s season has turned from thrilling to troubling. The defending champions, once masters of late drama, have now stumbled spectacularly from the top of the Premier League table.
From late magic to fading form
Arne Slot’s side began the season living dangerously. They stole wins with dramatic late goals, hiding their inconsistent form behind heroic finishes. Bournemouth, Newcastle, Arsenal, Burnley and Atletico Madrid all fell victim to Liverpool’s stoppage-time strikes. But such a high-risk approach could never last, especially with the champions struggling to find rhythm.
Now, the tables have turned. In seven brutal days, Liverpool suffered two late defeats that mirrored their own earlier triumphs. Chelsea claimed a deserved 2-1 win at Stamford Bridge thanks to Estevao Willian’s 95th-minute strike. Days later, Crystal Palace inflicted Liverpool’s first league defeat with Eddie Nketiah’s 97th-minute goal at Selhurst Park.
Between those two heartbreaks, Galatasaray edged Liverpool 1-0 in Istanbul’s intense RAMS Park. For the first time in his coaching career, Slot lost three consecutive games.
Defiance and frustration in Slot’s words
Slot faced the media defiant yet weary, determined to sound optimistic despite clear setbacks. “Last week, like this one, the fine margins weren’t on our side,” he said during a post-match interview. “We created more chances than both Palace and Chelsea. But we only scored once in each, while our opponents scored twice.”
The margins indeed remain fine, but the shift in fortune is dramatic. In Liverpool’s 11 games so far this season, 10 goals have been scored after the 80th minute. All but two of those changed the match result.
The breakdown of late drama
The wins:
Liverpool 4-2 Bournemouth (Premier League) – Federico Chiesa 88’, Mohamed Salah 90+4’
Newcastle 2-3 Liverpool (Premier League) – Rio Ngumoha 90+10’
Liverpool 1-0 Arsenal (Premier League) – Dominik Szoboszlai 83’
Burnley 0-1 Liverpool (Premier League) – Mohamed Salah (pen) 90+3’
Liverpool 3-2 Atletico Madrid (Champions League) – Virgil van Dijk 90+2’
Southampton 1-2 Liverpool (League Cup) – Hugo Ekitike 85’
The defeats:
Crystal Palace 2-1 Liverpool (Premier League) – Federico Chiesa 87’, Eddie Nketiah 90+7’
Chelsea 2-1 Liverpool (Premier League) – Estevao Willian 90+5’
Champions showing cracks
Regardless of timing, the truth is stark. Liverpool look a shadow of the side that swept to the Premier League title last season. Since losing the Community Shield to Crystal Palace, their flaws have become increasingly visible.
Liverpool’s balance has suffered after spending nearly £450m on new signings. Slot’s decision to play £116m Florian Wirtz behind the strikers—whether it be £70m Hugo Ekitike or £125m Alexander Isak—has left the team exposed through the middle.
The addition of two attack-minded full-backs, Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez, has made them even more vulnerable to counterattacks.
A tactical shift at Stamford Bridge
Against Chelsea, Slot reverted to his title-winning midfield trio of Ryan Gravenberch, Dominik Szoboszlai and Alex Mac Allister. The team looked slightly more stable, but still far from fluent. When Conor Bradley went off at half-time, Szoboszlai moved to right-back, disrupting rhythm again.
Cody Gakpo’s equaliser offered brief hope after Moises Caicedo’s stunning opener for Chelsea, yet Estevao’s stoppage-time winner crushed it. The team that once thrived on late heroics was undone by its own former strength.
Analysts spot deeper issues
Former England striker Wayne Rooney summed it up bluntly. “Chelsea just wanted it more,” he said on a football highlights show. “They showed more bite and determination. It wasn’t the Liverpool we’ve come to expect. Losing to late goals two weeks in a row hurts, but that’s football. They started well, scoring late goals themselves, but now they’re stuck in a bad spell.”
Former Chelsea winger Pat Nevin noted that being champions makes Liverpool every rival’s main target. “Arne Slot won the league in his first season and has had to adjust,” Nevin explained. “He knows Liverpool now carry a giant target on their back. Everyone wants to beat them, and that’s why retaining the title is so hard.”
Salah’s struggles mirror the team’s decline
Mohamed Salah, a Liverpool legend, now embodies the team’s difficulties. The 33-year-old, usually a model of precision, looks uncertain and short on confidence. He lost possession too often and wasted a perfect chance to equalise after a clever pass from Wirtz. His later efforts flew wide, his frustration visible.
Alexander Isak also appears far from full fitness. Though he assisted Gakpo’s goal, his finishing was poor, heading one fine chance off target and appealing in vain for a penalty before being substituted.
Wirtz showed flashes of quality but again failed to take control of the game.
A crucial pause before revival
After the international break, Slot will demand far more from his £241m forward duo, Wirtz and Isak. Liverpool began the season threatening to dominate again, but without true control. Now they look fragile, tired, and uncertain.
This has been Slot’s toughest week since succeeding Jürgen Klopp. While most managers dread the international break, Liverpool might just need it to regroup, recover and rediscover their bite.
