Liverpool have come a long way in recent weeks.
A six-game unbeaten run in all competitions has silenced talk of a crisis at Anfield and eased the pressure on head coach Arne Slot. They have taken 11 points of the last 15 on offer in the Premier League and strengthened their position in the Champions League with an impressive away win against Serie A side Inter.
The mood has been transformed since that humiliating 4-1 European defeat at home to PSV in late November, which followed similarly chastening domestic setbacks at the hands of Nottingham Forest and Manchester City.
From the depths of despair, the Premier League champions now sit level on points with fourth-placed Chelsea. Those with short memories and little patience who were calling for change have been muted as Slot has breathed new life into a managerial reign which had veered so alarmingly off course.
The Dutchman deserves great credit for how he has dealt with the toughest period of his career. He has not shied away from the big calls, dropping Mohamed Salah to deal with the fallout after the Egypt forward’s public outburst about losing his place in the team, and changing Liverpool’s system to make them more compact.
But Saturday’s chaotic 2-1 away win against Tottenham Hotspur underlined how far they still have to travel if they are going to salvage something tangible from this turbulent season.
How they lost control playing against 10 men after Richarlison reduced the deficit in the 83rd minute was worrying. How blind panic set in after Cristian Romero’s dismissal in stoppage time left the hosts with nine players was just downright ridiculous.
“What hurt me the most was from the nine minutes of added time, which ended up being 10, I think they had 95 per cent of the ball,” Slot said. “Every time when we had the ball, we kicked it away or we threw it away. It was unbelievable that we couldn’t keep the ball a bit longer. It looked as if we were down to nine and they were with 11, because it was attack after attack after attack.”
Liverpool’s game management was non-existent, with composure conspicuous by its absence. Possession was repeatedly frittered away and needless free kicks were conceded as they invited pressure. Slot gestured wildly on the touchline about them dropping too deep but the message did not get through. A better team than Tottenham would have made them pay.
Just how fraught it got late on was underlined by the sight of Slot taking off Jeremie Frimpong, who had stayed down for treatment after taking a blow to the mouth. The former Bayer Leverkusen man was fine to continue on his comeback after two months out, but Slot was not prepared to run the risk of waiting for him to come back on, so introduced Federico Chiesa instead.
“I didn’t want to go down to 10 men for 30 seconds,” he explained. “I think this is the only country where if players are injured they need to go off for 30 seconds, with a head injury it’s even 45, so I adapted to that. There wasn’t long to go and we were struggling even with plus one (player).”
Frimpong had come on for the injured Alexander Isak, who himself had replaced the injured Conor Bradley. It was that kind of night.
Despite having 65 per cent possession and an extra man from the 33rd minute onwards, when Xavi Simons was sent off for a studs-up challenge on Virgil van Dijk, Liverpool struggled to make their advantage count.
Remarkably, when Alisson denied Pedro Porro an equaliser at the death, Tottenham had attempted the previous six shots in the contest. The home side created as many big chances as Liverpool as defined by Opta (two apiece) and edged it on expected goals (xG) 1.07 to 0.66.
“The immediate reaction coming off was that it was a chaotic last five to 10 minutes,” Van Dijk told reporters post-match. “It wasn’t great, but to get the three points is massive. There was nothing wrong up to us conceding a goal. We need to analyse the last part.
“When you concede a goal and their fans get behind them like they did, it’s never easy to make the right decisions and find the right solutions. That’s something we can improve, but I don’t think it’s worrying. It’s a transition, and we need to keep getting better.”
On Dutch countryman Simons’ red card, Van Dijk added: “I don’t think there was any intention to hurt me but obviously he did hurt me, and then the referee and the VAR made the decision to send him off. I spoke to him after but it’s a chat that no one needs to know about.”
There were positives for Liverpool.
Not least the sight of the £241million ($320m at current exchange rates) double act of Florian Wirtz and Isak combining for a Premier League goal for the first time to break the deadlock early in the second half.
It was cruel that Isak’s joy proved to be so short-lived, as he was clattered by Micky van de Ven after firing beyond goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario. The Sweden striker had to be helped from the field by medical staff and Liverpool are anxiously awaiting scan results.
Hugo Ekitike, who nodded home the second goal from Frimpong’s deflected cross — much to Tottenham head coach Thomas Frank’s irritation — has been integral to the recent resurgence and the France striker’s importance will only grow if Isak is facing an extended spell on the sidelines. With Salah now away at the Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco and Cody Gakpo still out with a muscle injury, Slot’s attacking options have dwindled.
The hope is that Wirtz was only suffering from cramp when he pulled up holding his hamstring late on. With Dominik Szoboszlai banned for the visit of bottom-placed Wolverhampton Wanderers to Anfield next Saturday, Liverpool cannot afford to lose anyone else.
“Injuries unfortunately are part of football, and hopefully they’re not too bad,” added Van Dijk. “Alex scored a great goal. It’s too soon after the game to know (the full extent of it). Now we have a couple of days off. We will recover and then we will focus on Wolves. First we have Christmas. Being with your family and being healthy are the most important things in life.”
There will be no training on Christmas Day this year, with Slot having given his squad the day off. The players headed straight out for a festive team meal following this win in north London.
Relief was the overwhelming emotion after coming so close to throwing away two points. There has been much to admire about Liverpool’s recent resurgence, but if it is going to be extended into the new year and beyond, the bar simply has to be raised in terms of performances.