Liverpool haven’t been at their best this season, but Arne Slot’s side have won their last two games – against Inter Milan and Brighton & Hove Albion – and have kept clean sheets in both competitions.
The Premier League champions have been caught in the headlights of the new campaign this season, demoted from fighting for the title defense to racing for enough form to keep pace with the top half of the table.
It hasn’t been good enough, and some performances, lacking consistency and intensity, have been inexcusable, so far from last season’s level.
Who better than Ibrahima Konaté to summarize this decline, guilty of so many poor performances and numerous errors?
Konaté’s poor form
Liverpool have one of the most talented squads in Europe, and Konate falls into that category, having been hailed as “one of the best centre-backs in the world” by analyst Raj Chohan in the 2023/24 season.
But there are too many holes in his game. The 26-year-old has been totally abject this season, the epicentral part of a porous defense.
Konaté was a mainstay of Slot’s side last season, the perfect counterpoint alongside Virgil van Dijk. And when we examine the decline since the summer, it is curious to note that the defender has in fact retained a large part of his basic qualities.
The problem, of course, is that Konaté is in the grip of a crisis of confidence, making numerous mistakes on the pitch.
|
Konate in the Premier League (under Slot) |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Statistics (* per match) |
24/25 |
25/26 |
|
Matches (departures) |
31 (30) |
16 (16) |
|
Goals + Passes |
1 + 2 |
0 + 0 |
|
Clean sheets |
11 |
3 |
|
Keys* |
71.6 |
74.0 |
|
Precise passes* |
55.3 (90%) |
53.9 (90%) |
|
Key passes* |
0.3 |
0.3 |
|
Ball recoveries* |
3.2 |
2.9 |
|
Tackles + interceptions* |
1.8 |
2.4 |
|
Permissions* |
4.0 |
6.1 |
|
Ground duels won |
2.0 (61%) |
3.0 (63%) |
|
Aerial duels won* |
2.4 (71%) |
3.5 (72%) |
|
Mistakes made |
3 |
4 |
|
Data via Sofascore |
||
This sparked a storm of criticism, and most of it was deserved. However, Konate is a monstrous central defender and has proven himself as a star member of a Premier League winning team.
Can he bounce back and prove he’s worth his salt like he once was? Recent results suggest he could be on course to achieve this, with Liverpool indeed posting two clean sheets on the trot after that disastrous capitulation at Elland Road.
Additionally, Slot backed his defensive lieutenant, saying after Liverpool beat Inter 2-0 at San Siro that he “would like to highlight” the Blues’ talent. Then, against Brighton in the Premier League, Konate won ten duels and made clearances en route to successive clean sheets.
Is he turning a corner? Maybe. And Konate hasn’t been the only latecomer to the Merseyside side this season, with another Redman risking replacing the centre-back as the weak link in this Liverpool side.
Liverpool’s new biggest problem
You might think we’re doing here following Mohamed Salah’s turbulent few weeks at Liverpool. Since issuing an explosive statement to Leeds earlier in December, the Egyptian striker has made it clear that his relationship with Slot has broken down after he was benched for three successive matches.
He was then left out of Liverpool’s trip to Italy and then benched against Brighton before being taken off the bench and making a big impact.
Every Liverpool supporter will be hoping that Salah stays at the club until – at least – the end of the season, and he could still be instrumental in any possible success the club achieves before the end of the game.
However, prominent Liverpool fan John Sullivan has said Cody Gakpo is becoming a “much bigger problem than Salah” on the left flank. Gakpo is currently injured and has missed the club’s recent victories. Slot has been changing its system lately, and this diamond-shaped setup has offered flashes of success. Gakpo was absent, injured.
Gakpo, 26, has hardly been free from criticism this season, having regularly been criticized for his one-dimensional performances, lack of nuance and flair on the left and leaving fans sad over the summer sale of Luis Diaz to Bayern Munich.
The Dutchman remains a prolific outlet, having scored five goals and provided four assists this season, but there is no doubt that his usual approach to playing from the left wing is becoming tiring, especially as he averages one shot on target every two Premier League appearances, according to Sofascore.
Liverpool lost some of their momentum in the final third of the season, even with such an impressive influx of world-class attacking talent. There is a reason why FSG have a direct interest in Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo despite the pressing need for a centre-back.
Consider the recent resurgence of Milos Kerkez as further evidence of Gakpo’s problematic presence as the only outright left winger in the Liverpool team. Kerkez, 21, joined Liverpool from Bournemouth in the summer, and he flattered to deceive, at odds with the left-back role in Slot’s undermined system.
But he is progressing now, getting stronger in Liverpool’s recent matches. Against Brighton, he obtained authorization to advance and Hungarian athletics thus won eight duels.
Salah is getting older, but he remains one of the most potent threats in the world, and it is essential that he stays on board for the rest of the campaign. Gakpo, however, falls apart in a different way, prey, in fact, to a stylistic flaw that can only be corrected with an expensive signing, Diaz-style.
While Konate can return to form as a starter for Liverpool, Gakpo may not be cut out for an immovable role on the wing, and Liverpool need to resolve this issue quickly.
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Liverpool are ready to be active in the January transfer market.
