2025-09-27 18:05:51
Liverpool legend John Aldridge has called out Arne Slot for his way of trying to win games this season, as his defence was ‘very poor’ and the Crystal Palace ‘deserved’ to beat them as a result.
The Reds had been flying high in the Premier League prior to week six. They’d won five out of five games, and scored 11 goals – though they had also conceded five goals.
In the opening two weeks of the season, they conceded two goals each in wins over Bournemouth and then Newcastle.
On Saturday came the third instance in which Liverpool conceded twice, but on this occasion, they were unable to outscore their opponents, as Crystal Palace beat them 2-1 with a last-gasp strike from Eddie Nketiah.
It moved Palace second in the league, three points behind the Reds, and while the Eagles were deserving of their victory, according to Liverpool legend Aldridge, Arne Slot’s gung-ho tactics cost them.
He posted on X: ‘OUCH!!!we can’t expect to score 3 goals almost every game to win a match.Defensively very poor today!we know how they fight for every ball and are very direct and physical,you just have to match with it and the cream will rise to the top. Palace deserved their win,we just should’ve seen it out a point would have been more than we deserved.’
Indeed, Liverpool have won games by one goal on literally every occasion this season apart from the 4-2 Premier League opener against Bournemouth, and obviously this loss.
For fans, it will be exciting to see their side usually manage to find a goal to ensure a win, but when it backfires, like it did against Palace, Slot’s system looks less tactical, and more like he’s literally just got lots of good attackers who he hopes can keep banging the goals in.
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But those attackers were not on song against Palace. Of the 20 shots Liverpool had, only four of them were on target – Palace had less altogether but more directed on goal.
The Eagles also had less of the ball, but made it count when they had it, almost as if the Reds were not expecting them to score at the times they did.
Liverpool remain top of the table, but a trip to Chelsea next week represents a tough task, despite the fact the Blues are without Cole Palmer and also lost on Saturday.
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