Even if Liverpool manage to claw back enough form this season to retain their position in the Champions League, the end-of-year review is going to be scathing.
The Premier League champions, quite simply, have been abject, and though there have been brighter spells in recent months, Arne Slot is a world away from the project he entered less than two years ago and led to illustrious success.
The Reds need to limp over the finish line in fifth-place as a bare minimum. Even by securing a seat in next year’s Champions League and perhaps winning some silverware besides, there’s so much that needs fixing this summer.
Where Liverpool need to improve this summer
Liverpool have had no shortage of problems this season, and even after last summer’s £450m spending spree, change is bound to be afoot.
Defence will be the first port of call. Rennes centre-back Jeremy Jacquet has already been purchased; he’s stayed in France until the end of the season.
But even with Jacquet inbound and Giovanni Leoni pushing to return from an ACL injury, Liverpool might be short. Ibrahima Konate is mooted to leave at the end of his contract, and Virgil van Dijk is no spring chicken.
Defence is a concern, but it’s not the only concern. Liverpool’s greatest concern may be out wide, with talismanic legend Mohamed Salah so far below his lofty standards this season. The Egyptian King turns 34 in June, and there’s no guarantee that he will play on Merseyside next season.
|
Mo Salah in the Premier League for Slot |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Stats (* per 90) |
24/25 |
25/26 |
|
Matches (starts) |
38 (38) |
19 (17) |
|
Goals + Assists |
29 + 18 |
4 + 6 |
|
Touches* |
49.1 |
48.4 |
|
Shots (on target)* |
3.4 (1.6) |
2.6 (0.7) |
|
Big chances missed |
24 |
9 |
|
Accurate passes* |
22.4 (74%) |
21.9 (76%) |
|
Big chances created |
27 |
10 |
|
Key passes* |
2.4 |
2.2 |
|
Succ. dribbles* |
1.5 (45%) |
0.6 (25%) |
|
Ball recoveries* |
2.7 |
2.8 |
|
Tackles + interceptions* |
0.8 |
0.5 |
|
Duels won* |
3.3 (41%) |
2.1 (29%) |
FSG’s financial worries don’t end there. After all, they may well need to redress the other flank too and replace the new Darwin Nunez.
Liverpool need to upgrade on the new Nunez
This season, Cody Gakpo has taken the role of scapegoat at Anfield. Some of the criticism has been harsh, but there’s a reason so many Liverpool fans are frustrated with Slot’s trusted lieutenant on the left wing.
Across his past 19 Premier League matches, Gakpo, 26, has scored three goals and supplied one assist. That’s not good enough, but it doesn’t tell the full tale.
The eye test reveals all, and the Netherlands star has been well below the standard this season, certainly lacking the silky style that led pundit Jamie Carragher to declare him as Liverpool’s new version of Bobby Firmino. “He’s more of a Firmino than some of the other players,” the retired centre-back said in 2023, shortly after Gakpo joined Liverpool from PSV Eindhoven for around £35m.
That one’s fallen a bit flat. For sure, many current Liverpool fans would struggle to see the likeness. Gakpo has become one-dimensional and predictable, lacking the completeness to become a truly world-class forward.
In that, perhaps he’s more comparable to someone like Nunez, who was talented and well-liked but never filled his potential in England after joining Liverpool from Benfica for an initial £64m fee.
The comparison can only stretch so far. Nunez, after all, was anything but predictable, even if that was often to his detriment. However, the Uruguayan’s inability to find consistency proved his undoing under Slot’s wing, whose cool and calculated style was at odds with Nunez’s mercurial nature.
But when Nunez kept missing chances, Liverpool fans got fed up, and they turned toward the academy, with youngster Jayden Danns a bright spark who enjoyed a goalscoring start to life in the senior side. Analyst Ben Mattinson even said the homegrown talent was a “better finisher than Nunez“.
Now, history is repeating itself: there are calls from the likes of Steven Gerrard for Rio Ngumoha to start playing from the opening whistle, moving Gakpo to bench.
This isn’t to say Gakpo should be sold, but it’s clear that Liverpool need to sign some new wingers next season, stifled as they are by laborious wide play.
The likes of Bayern Munich’s Michael Olise and RB Leipzig prospect Yan Diomande are at the top of that shopping list, the latter a far more likely option, but it’s crucial that FSG return to their best in the transfer market and secure a top-class talent who can grow into a superstar.
Gakpo, sadly, has proved himself capable in the squad, but not in a leading role. Like Nunez before him, his defects have been exposed.
Talks held: Liverpool can revive Salah by hiring “genius” Slot replacement
Slot has struggled to get a tune out of his Liverpool players this season, and pressure is building.