Just over a month into Liverpool's season and the storm clouds have started to gather over Anfield.
Seven games across all competitions have yielded three draws and two defeats leaving Jurgen Klopp with a host of problems that need fixing to stop the campaign truly unravelling just a few weeks into it.
A disappointing period reached a nadir on Wednesday night as Napoli won 4-1 in Italy in a game where Liverpool were a distant second best. Their Champions League hopes are not irretrievably damaged, at least.
READ MORE: Jurgen Klopp can 'reinvent' Liverpool with tactical ploy he perfected at Borussia Dortmund
READ MORE: Liverpool face more fixture chaos as Premier League 'consider switch' for Chelsea game
Tuesday night's visit from Ajax gives them a chance to kick-start their Group A adventure, while they are still just six points off top spot in the Premier League, despite taking just half of the 18 on offer to them so far.
Here, the ECHO examines the issues and how they can be resolved.
Put pressure on the ball
Having conceded 10 goals so far, questions have raged about Liverpool's continued use of their famous high line.
All too often that system has been undone by hopeful long balls in behind the backline, opening up the Reds far too easily. Games against Fulham, Crystal Palace, Manchester United and Napoli have seen them concede high-quality opportunities for the opposition this way.
But while that 'type' of chance coughed up by Klopp's men - when opposition forwards run into oceans of space to go clean through against the goalkeeper - look like a major concern, perception is not always the reality.
Liverpool's high line is an effective tool and an important reason behind their ability to dominate games in the way they so often did last time out when they collected 92 Premier League points, won both domestic cups and went all the way to the Champions League final.
Their 26 goals shipped in the league was the fewest in Europe's top-five leagues alongside Manchester City. The high line works. It enables the Reds to squeeze the pitch and keep opposition hemmed in their own half.
The real problems stem further up the pitch; in midfield where a lack of pressure on the ball makes it easier to give away quality chances.
"The high is a risk if you don't get pressure on the ball," Klopp said after Wednesday night's game in Naples. "Usually if you have a high line and you don't have pressure on the ball then, yes, it's a risk.
"But that is usually not the case. The problem is not the high line, we need a high line to be compact. The problem is that we were never close enough to put the opponent under pressure. That's it."
Liverpool's high line strategy is, at this point, non-negotiable. The new directive to the officials is to raise the flags quicker for offside calls, so that, in theory, should limit the amount of chances it at least appears that Klopp's men are giving away, at times.
One thing that has to undoubtedly improve, however, is the midfield pressing, which has been non-existent at times. Injuries have undoubtedly bit Liverpool in that area and Klopp's decision to play Fabinho alongside the attack-minded fledglings of Fabio Carvalho and Harvey Elliott at Everton last week left the Brazilian overworked in the engine room.
The ongoing selection of Elliott, for all his potential and quality in possession, has seen the Reds concede some natural physicality in the middle of the park. Klopp might be best served reverting to his more senior, experienced professionals while he navigates his way out of the maze.
The return of Thiago Alcantara will help on that front, no question. The former Barcelona and Bayern Munich star is regarded as one of the finest central midfielders of the last decade. So too will Athur Melo, once the on-loan Juventus midfielder eventually gets himself match fit. But pressurising opponents in midfield will require a collective team effort.
Rest up
A pervading theory surrounding Liverpool right now is one of fatigue. The players were involved in every possible fixture last season as the 21/22 term stretched to 63 games. And having spent the summer in Thailand and Singapore before a draining, exacting week at an Austrian training base, there is a concern that Klopp's players are already physically and mentally in need of a refresh.
The impending break may offer a chance for that. Whether it's a full week of training for the non-internationals at the AXA Centre in Kirkby or those representing their country briefly focusing their thinking elsewhere, a couple of weeks away from it all could yet have a transformational impact.
It also gives Klopp another couple of weeks to get his injured players in the treatment room as often as possible. Liverpool are currently without Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Naby Keita, Jordan Henderson, Curtis Jones and Fabio Carvalho to call upon in midfield, while Ibrahima Konate's absence remains ongoing at the back.
Get Salah more central
It's been a curious few weeks for Mohamed Salah. With just two goals to his name, it's statistically his worst start to a Liverpool term since he moved from Roma in the summer of 2017, and he has just 11 this calendar year.
Salah has been questioned for taking up wider positions than previously at Anfield; something which may have been tweaked following the capture of Darwin Nunez over the summer.
Anfield insiders spoke of Klopp and his backroom staff adjusting the team's style of play to get the most out of the £64m striker upon his arrival, but so far it has had an adverse effect going forward for Salah, who has been top scorer every year since he moved.
“It’s not more than other seasons," Kopp said when asked about those wide positions after the goalless Merseyside derby last week. "I am not sure. We want to have Mo in this position but we have always had him more often in the centre position as well.
"Today especially we wanted to use him a bit more centrally but didn’t have a lot of time to train obviously. We only recovered. We spoke a lot about it, I’m not sure I was clear enough in the first half, we didn’t do exactly what we wanted.
"When Mo dropped or Lucho (Luis Diaz) dropped after two or three passes they were completely free in between the lines because Darwin kept the last line back which was a clear presence. They like to drop pretty early. But we didn’t do that a lot. I don’t think this season he is too often wide, today in a few moments yes, but in general he could have scored again in the last minute.”
A look at Salah's heatmap for the current campaign, however, does show a player who seems to be holding his position a lot more in less central areas. The adaptation needed to extract the best from Nunez should not come at a reduced output for a player who can justifiably lay claim to being Liverpool's most important in the final third.
At a basic level, getting Salah involved more in the penalty area will see the team win more games.
Settle on a centre-back pairing
With there's been a lack of fluency in the final third, there's also been headaches for Klopp in defence too. The injury to Konate in the final friendly of the summer against Strasbourg has left Liverpool without the France defender to date.
Having started the 2-2 draw with Fulham on the opening weekend, a groin complaint for Joel Matip also saw him miss three games before sitting out a fourth on the substitutes' bench. He returned last week for the final 10 minutes of the Merseyside derby before being introduced for Champions League duty at half-time of the Napoli nightmare.
In the meantime, Nat Phillips made his first-ever start alongside Virgil van Dijk in the 1-1 draw with Crystal Palace while Joe Gomez has stepped into the void for the last five games.
Phillips would likely have left the club this summer had it not been for Konate's injury and Gomez's lack of rhythm that stems from a difficult two-year period that included a serious knee issue has made it tougher for the former Charlton youngster to get back to his best.
A prolonged spell of fitness for Matip would come at an opportune time now for Klopp as he seeks to get his team back to the sort of level their supporters have become accustomed to. A steady run of games alongside Van Dijk should at least alleviate one worry and allow the manager to focus his attention elsewhere.
Stick with Nunez
It's been difficult to assess the early days of Darwin Nunez's time at Anfield.
Brought to the club for an initial £64m from Benfica in June, the Uruguay international has the chance to become the most expensive signing in club history if his £21m worth of add-ons are unlocked.
For that to happen, however, it would mean Nunez has been a wild success and there has been little evidence of that to date. A snapshot from a tight angle at Everton could have made him an instant derby hero had it not been for Jordan Pickford's stunning save, but it's been a curious opening to his Reds career.
Nunez is undoubtedly a physical threat with an eye for goal but there are rough edges that will need smoothing out. That will be done by regular Premier League minutes.
A sending off just an hour into his full debut was ill-advised and as he kicked his heels on the sidelines after becoming the first player to be sent off for violent conduct in the Klopp era, Liverpool toiled.
On the bench for Wednesday's loss in Naples, his introduction did little to change things but it is still early days for the South American. The club's recruitment team rarely make a misstep these days given their exhaustive approach work before a green light is given, so there is little reason to doubt them here.
It may take some time for Nunez to get fully up to speed with Liverpool life, though, so regular starts leading the charge down the middle of the front three will be more beneficial to Klopp in the long run than chopping and changing.
READ NEXT:
- 'Shut your mouth' - Steven Gerrard dressing room incident made Liverpool star 'melt' after dream Anfield return
Paul Merson makes Liverpool top four prediction and Manchester United claim
- Liverpool can reinvent themselves with four players as Jurgen Klopp deals with unexpected break
- Training ground bans, transfer list threats and captaincy revoked - dressing room story of meanest Liverpool manager
- Liverpool may have made greatest Premier League signing for £2.5m after TV cameraman scouted him
