Nine defeats in 12 games. The worst run in 71 years. By a team that coasted to the Premier League title last season and were then supposedly upgraded to the tune of almost £450m. Unbelievable, as Arne Slot would say. His Liverpool are stuck in reverse and his position could be under serious threat unless a way out is found soon.
PSV Eindhoven were the latest beneficiaries of woeful Liverpool defending and aimless attacking play as the Dutch side inflicted a comprehensive defeat on Slot’s team.
Liverpool have endured three consecutive losses by a three-goal margin (or more) for the first time since December 1953. These nine defeats in a dozen games represent the club’s worst run since that 1953‑54 season, when Liverpool were last relegated, and the latest was the club’s joint‑heaviest home loss in Europe.
But it is not only statistics that condemn Slot and his players following the defeat by a composed and clinical PSV side. It was the despondent body language that followed Couhaib Driouech’s late brace for the Eredivisie champions, PSV’s third and fourth goals of the night, and the sight of fans heading for the exits – for a second game in succession – long before the final whistle. Jürgen Klopp spoke of turning doubters into believers on his first day as Liverpool manager. Believers are becoming doubters again, with Slot unable to find solutions to the freefall. There were songs of support around Anfield after the final whistle but also audible boos. The man who won the title in his debut season in English football only seven months ago is losing the confidence of the Kop.
Virgil van Dijk and Slot had demanded a reaction from the side’s alarming 3-0 home defeat against Nottingham Forest on Saturday. It appeared fitfully. Not conceding first must have been on Slot’s list of corrections for Liverpool’s sorry run of results, but that is precisely what happened as his captain gifted PSV an early breakthrough.
Peter Bosz’s assured visitors made a confident start. From their second corner in quick succession, delivered by Joey Veerman, Van Dijk handled high above his head to concede a clear penalty. The Spanish referee, Alejandro Hernández, was unmoved by Van Dijk’s claims that he had been pushed in the back by his Netherlands defensive colleague Jerdy Schouten. So, too, was the video assistant referee. The veteran Croatian midfielder Ivan Perisic sent the penalty the opposite way to the Liverpool goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili, who was deputising for the ill Alisson. It was the worst possible start for a side under pressure. And it meant Slot’s team had conceded first in 10 of their past 12 outings. Ridiculous.
Unlike Forest, however, when Van Dijk admitted that panic kicked in, Liverpool did respond positively to falling behind. As they should; there were only six minutes on the clock after all. Alexis Mac Allister and Cody Gakpo combined to create an equaliser 10 minutes later. Gakpo, receiving the midfielder’s pass on the left, cut across Sergino Dest and forced Matej Kovar into a low save. The PSV keeper could only push the ball back into the danger zone where Dominik Szoboszlai slotted into an unguarded net.
The PSV defender Yarek Gasiorowski had a goal disallowed for offside shortly afterwards following a wild foul by Van Dijk on Ismael Saibari. The Liverpool defender was possibly still fuming over the penalty decision. His mood was not helped when he headed a Mohamed Salah corner against the PSV crossbar.
Liverpool ended the first half strongly but PSV rediscovered their composure after the restart, much to the annoyance of the home crowd who saw their team outplayed for long periods. Liverpool’s defending also added to Anfield’s sense of unease.
Mauro Júnior, PSV’s defensive midfielder, glided easily away from Salah deep inside the Liverpool half before threading a glorious pass between Van Dijk and Ibrahima Konaté. Guus Til read the delivery perfectly and, arriving ahead of Milos Kerkez, beat the Liverpool keeper with a first‑time shot from close range. Slot’s woes deepened when Hugo Ekitiké hobbled off injured and was replaced by Alexander Isak.
Konaté’s performance had been an improvement on the low bar of Saturday but a dreadful error from the Liverpool centre-half invited PSV to extend their advantage. The France international completely missed what should have been a routine clearance to allow Ricardo Pepi, on as a substitute, to advance through on goal. Pepi cut inside Van Dijk and squeezed a low shot against the base of a post. Couhaib Driouech, also on as a substitute, followed in to beat Mamardashvili from the rebound.
Konaté was soon replaced for a striker, as he was against Forest, with Slot having to take more risks to chase the game. The end result was the same with Liverpool exposed and Driouech finding the bottom corner following an incisive PSV counter attack in stoppage time.
