Liverpool may have opened the season with seven straight wins across all competitions, but the two weeks leading into the international break brought plenty of concern.
Three consecutive defeats saw the Reds slip to second in the table, raising fresh doubts about what has been a somewhat unconvincing title defence so far.
Despite investing nearly half a billion pounds during the summer, Liverpool have looked disjointed and lacking in control — a far cry from the slick, dominant side that stormed to the league title last season.
One major issue has been at right-back, where replacing Trent Alexander-Arnold following his move to Real Madrid has proved difficult.
Jeremie Frimpong, signed for £29.5 million from Bayer Leverkusen, and academy graduate Conor Bradley have both been given chances, but neither has truly impressed.
According to Alan Shearer, manager Arne Slot appears to have lost confidence in both players, often preferring to use midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai in the role instead.
“Slot doesn’t trust Frimpong yet at right-back,” Shearer told Betfair. “He doesn’t trust Conor Bradley either — that’s why he’s been using Szoboszlai there. Gomez was on the bench and he still played Gravenberch at centre-back. The balance is all over the place right now. It’s not just Salah — the problems are on both flanks.”
Still, Shearer remains optimistic that Slot will get Liverpool back on track: “Arne Slot is a brilliant coach, so it’s only a matter of time before they start firing again.
“Now’s the moment for other teams to build a gap because just a week ago, Arsenal were five points behind Liverpool — now they’re one point ahead. Things can change quickly, and Liverpool will improve, as will Salah.
“Salah will rediscover his form, start scoring again, and we’ll all look back and wonder what the fuss was about.”
However, even with a Liverpool revival, Shearer believes Arsenal are best placed to win the title this season, citing their ambitious summer spending and the incredible depth now available in Mi
kel Arteta’s squad.
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