Digging Deeper Into Liverpool’s Error-Filled Loss To Fulham

With a disastrous first half that gifted Fulham a two goal lead Liverpool could not overtake, we take a look at what it means for Arne Slot’s Reds.

Arne Slot once again opted to keep his starting side largely intact from a match just a few days prior, with Cody Gakpo the only change. With so many minutes played for the core squad, players looked lethargic from the off. Fulham looked in charge in the early going, with the Reds turning the ball over repeatedly, often from unforced errors. Liverpool took a surprise lead through a stunning strike from Alexis Mac Allister, but were quickly undone by a series of defensive gaffs that gifted the hosts a 3-1 lead at the half. The Reds were improved in the second half, though some of that was likely due to game state. Luis Diaz came on to score a second, and Liverpool came close on several occasions to finding an equalizer, including a Harvey Elliott effort that rattled the crossbar. In the end, it wasn’t enough as the Reds fell to only their second Premier League loss of the season.

Below, we take a look at some winners and losers on the night, and attempt to disentangle narrative from fact.

Winners

Conor Bradley
The right back returned from another lengthy injury layoff and came on as a substitute in the 66th minute. Despite only having 30 minutes on the pitch, he was the standout of the match for Liverpool. His incisive runs forward opened up space, and he combined well. His efforts were highlighted by his underlapping run to receive the ball from Curtis Jones before driving forward with the ball, slipping in Luis Diaz for the second Liverpool goal.

Bangers
It was not a particularly great match from Alexis Mac Allister, but the diminutive Argentine did have a moment of brilliance that finished with a fantastic goal. He showed hustle and strength to win a ball in midfield and hold off a defender before unleashing an absolute thunderbastard from distance that rocketed into the far corner.

Losers

Defensive Errors
You can take your pick of the starting defenders, all of whom had a pretty terrible match. Each of the Fulham goals were highlighted by uncharacteristic play from the defensive unit. The first goal was caused by Ibrahima Konaté missing a header, leaving Curtis Jones with little reaction time as the ball came off of his knee and directly to Ryan Sessegnon for a finish. The second goal was a calamity of errors from Andy Robertson. He played a poor ball back across the middle to a Fulham player, misplayed a header directly to another Fulham player moments later, and then had the ball deflect off of his back past Caoimhín Kelleher in net. Virgil van Dijk got bumped out of the way on a clearing header and was held off to allow the third goal.

Beyond the goals, there were plenty of further poor play from the defensive unit. Poor touches on the ball and some lax marking allowed Fulham to generate possession in forward areas and several other good chances.

Mohamed Salah
The Egyptian struggled yet again to have an impact on the match. He was isolated wide on the right for much of the match as he was unable to beat the first man most of the match. He was turned the ball over four times and dispossessed twice more. He was in position to tie the match, but he skied his chance on the volley. Salah has not recorded a goal or an assist in almost a month.

Dissecting The Narrative

The weekend was setting up to be a big step to a Premier League coronation for Liverpool. Arsenal were held by Everton on Saturday, leaving the Reds a chance to go 14 points clear with 7 matches remaining. It would have left Liverpool with only 8 points required to mathematically seal the title. The Reds had only lost once in the league, and were undefeated away to a Fulham side that had not defeated the Reds at Craven Cottage since 2011.

In the end, Liverpool continued a run of flat performances and were punished for their mistakes this time around. The loss snapped a 26 match unbeaten streak in the league. Liverpool will still likely go on to win the league with matches to spare thanks to the large cushion they built themselves, but the lack of sharpness around the side has taken some of the shine off the march to the title.

What Happens Next

Liverpool have played their two matches in a week for the last time this season. The Reds will have a week to recuperate and regroup before hosting West Ham next Sunday. It kicks off a stretch of three matches against sides in the bottom half of the table.