Liverpool - Crystal Palace: The remedy called victory

29/10/2025 07:41:00 pandatv

The best way for Liverpool to end their crisis is to win again and fix the mistakes spreading like a contagion inside the team.

Signs of The Kop’s crisis appeared in their penalty shootout loss to Crystal Palace in the Community Shield, and coach Arne Slot must "treat" the team’s health with the most effective methods.

Strengthening the defense

Opponents are effectively countering the English champions by using long and direct play. They have exploited weaknesses in the Van Dijk-Konate center-back duo and also targeted the gaps in midfield.

Starting both Wirtz and Szoboszlai caused negative repercussions; Palace exploited the spaces between Liverpool’s lines not only in the Community Shield but also in the Premier League match at the end of September. Last weekend, Mikkel Damsgaard, though he didn’t score in Brentford’s 3-2 victory, was the one who broke through the English champions’ second defensive line. He faced no resistance from the opponent’s midfield.

Slot tends to pursue and implement his football philosophy more thoroughly in his second season leading Liverpool. This means players must quickly adapt to the new system and the pressure arising within the team. Instead of protecting each other like a unified block last season, The Kop’s stars now feel threatened every time the opponents attack or counterattack.

Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool played lively attacking football but also defended actively in the opponent’s half; no team can win a championship with a weak defense. In fact, to stop the spreading crisis at Etihad, Pep Guardiola had to focus on defense and protect his goal as much as possible.

It’s not hard to diagnose The Kop’s current issues. Allowing Brentford’s Ouattara to score in the 5th minute was the fourth time this season the English champions conceded within the first 15 minutes of a match.

Equally dangerous is the fact they have conceded many times in the last 15 minutes, including stoppage time. Van Dijk and Konate’s decline is an individual issue, but losing concentration is a collective mistake. When these two weaknesses combine, the red team’s crisis becomes very serious.

Liverpool must stop the crisis caused by Crystal Palace earlier this season.

Helping defenders regain confidence and reach their best form is Slot’s long-term plan, but strengthening the defensive system’s solidity can be done immediately, like Man City. "It’s not just the defense but all 11 players. Surely, the many changes over the summer are related, so it’s no surprise things are like this for Liverpool," said Arne Slot.

Returning to winning ways

Therefore, Liverpool seems to need a change. Their season started with Palace, and seven weeks later, their first Premier League loss also came from Palace. It was a wrong start to the season. After five losses in six games, a month in which they didn’t even draw in England, let alone win, they face a very tough reality.

Normally, reaching the fifth round of the League Cup isn’t a big reward for a team like Liverpool. But considering the team’s decline, a win over Crystal Palace tonight is almost essential.

Advancing to the next round of this cup competition won’t be valued more than a victory, as Liverpool struggles to avoid ongoing controversies and criticism since their losing streak began at the end of September.

This brings us back to today’s story. The match against Palace is about continuity and change, between correcting mistakes and seeking what belongs to the team’s identity: counter-pressing, quick transitions, relentless contesting in the opponent’s final third to create short chances, controlling second balls, and dominating midfield.

Salah’s lackluster performances may be linked to the new full-backs. Frimpong’s movement is significantly different from Trent Alexander-Arnold’s, and the lack of connection with new attacking teammates explains why number 11 is not at his best.

All of Liverpool’s trophies have largely depended on Salah’s talent. Therefore, restoring the Egyptian forward as the prince of Anfield is a crucial task for Slot now.

Nhat Minh

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