Liverpool revealed its true colors

Liverpool left the field with a 1-1 draw against Sunderland, but the lingering feeling was not regret at not winning but worry about a system that was out of sync.

Isak has yet to show his worth at Liverpool.

In the early morning of December 4, Arne Slot's team again exposed old flaws, new limitations and only escaped defeat thanks to the most anticipated face of this season: Florian Wirtz, a record contract worth over 157 million USD .

Isak sinks, Wirtz steps up

If the 2-0 win over West Ham in the previous round was Isak's first confirmation in the Premier League with the opening goal, then the confrontation with Sunderland proved that Liverpool still do not know how to create an attacking structure strong enough to "feed" killers like him. The first half saw Isak almost swallowed up between the lines.

Without the ball, without space, without a co-ordinator, Isak looked more like a lost cog than an attacking leader. It was a harsh reality for a striker who had just scored and was expected to start an explosive cycle.

And once again, Liverpool had to rely on Wirtz. If Isak was the solution in the box, Wirtz was the only source of energy throughout the game. Every creative moment came through the German midfielder.

Liverpool’s equaliser was a perfect example: Curtis Jones pressing for the ball, passing to Wirtz, and the rest was a performance any big club would pay for, the fluid dribbling, the daring in tight situations, and the decisive finish. The ball changed direction after hitting Nordi Mukiele before flying into the net, but it was Wirtz’s signature from start to finish.

Wirtz is trying very hard to integrate with Liverpool.

Two games in a row, Wirtz and Isak, each in a role, have lifted Liverpool out of a difficult spiral. That may make the board proud of their summer deals, but it raises a bigger question: why has Arne Slot’s system still failed to create a stable framework for a team with championship ambitions?

That picture was made even clearer in the final moments of the game, a situation Liverpool fans will want to forget. As the team pressed forward in search of a decisive goal, the defensive structure collapsed.

Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate were both stuck in the opposition half after a set-piece. Federico Chiesa, who came on as a number 9, was the deepest man but left Wilson Isidor unmarked. Roefs played a perfect long pass and Isidor broke free to face Alisson.

If Chiesa had not run back with all his might and cleared the ball right on the goal line, Liverpool would have been left in the dust at Anfield. A strong team cannot live off the saves of their strikers.

Liverpool need to change

Those final minutes showed a Liverpool that lacked balance, lacked courage at decisive moments and lacked the ability to control risks, which used to be a strong point in the Jurgen Klopp era. Slot wanted to build a softer, more controlled Liverpool, but the current image is of a fragile group, prone to chaos when the match entered a tense phase.

Liverpool are not out of crisis yet.

Even Slot's introduction of Mohamed Salah at the start of the second half showed that the structure he was experimenting with lacked creative depth. The trio of Gravenberch, Mac Allister, Szoboszlai were capable of keeping the rhythm, but lacked the decisive punch. Robertson and Gomez crossed the ball a lot but lacked accuracy. Without Wirtz, Liverpool would have almost no one left to create a real breakthrough.

“We didn’t create much and we didn’t let them create much,” admitted Arne Slot after the game. “But we were lucky at the end.” That’s exactly what happened on the pitch. Liverpool were not in complete control, not attacking well, not defending solidly, and did not deserve to win.

In the last two rounds, Isak scored, Wirtz made his mark, but Liverpool still could not beat Sunderland, a team with organization but not a very strong opponent. That shows that the team at Anfield is relying too much on individual effort instead of a stable structure. A team that wants to compete for the championship must be stable every week, cannot live on moments or luck.

Liverpool left the field with 1 point. But the real value of the match was not in that number. It was in the warning: Slot had two high-class players, but the team was not strong enough to take them to the top. To compete for the championship, Liverpool must quickly solve a bigger problem, not Isak or Wirtz, but themselves.

Source: https://znews.vn/liverpool-lo-nguyen-hinh-post1608354.html