Liverpool were not at their best again as they fell to a second straight defeat against Galatasaray in the Champions League and Arne Slot has been left with plenty to ponder
10:11, 01 Oct 2025Updated 10:47, 01 Oct 2025
Liverpool were poor in defeat against Galatasaray in Istanbul(Image: Justin Setterfield)
The Premier League crown is evidence enough to suggest that Arne Slot has had the Midas touch since succeeding Jurgen Klopp last summer. But the Dutchman’s majestic maiden season was always likely to be a tough act to follow, and so it’s proving.
The golden touch certainly deserted Liverpool against Galatasaray, where they were flat and lifeless, for the most part. And their poor showing in Istanbul was not exactly the tonic required to eradicate a shock defeat against Crystal Palace at the weekend. To put things into context, this is just the second time in 15 months that Liverpool have lost successive games under Slot, so we’re not exactly in crisis territory. But even during the catalogue of wins that had preceded the games against Palace and Galatasaray, there has been an air of vulnerability about the champions.
10 games into the new season after a historic summer of spending and Liverpool look miles off the levels that took them to a 20th domestic title under Slot’s stewardship. With big signings failing to catch light and the team looking uncharacteristically brittle, the Reds chief has been left with plenty to ponder during the upcoming international break…
OPINION
Jeremy CrossREAD MORE: Arne Slot’s big Mo Salah call backfires as Liverpool lose vs Galatasaray – 5 talking points1. A case for the defence
“Attack wins you games, defence wins you titles,” Sir Alex Ferguson famously once said. And the legendary manager of Liverpool’s bitter rivals, Manchester United, certainly knew a thing or two about winning titles.
Liverpool’s defence was the bedrock of their Premier League success under Slot last season but that solidity has been nowhere to be seen this term. In the Reds’ opening 10 games, they’ve conceded 13 goals, keeping just two clean sheets. After the same amount of games last year, Liverpool had recorded six shut-outs. Even beyond the numbers, they look fragile; Slot’s men were carved open too easily too many times by a Galatasaray side who are unlikely to pull up any trees in the Champions League last season, with their players being given the freedom of Istanbul at times to pick and move for passes.
Individually, Ibrahima Konate and summer signing, Milos Kerkez, have been under-par and the hope will be that both find form in the coming weeks. On numerous occasions this season already, late goals have papered over the cracks. But even with the wealth of attacking talent at Slot’s disposal, that doesn’t feel sustainable across an entire campaign.
2. Chemistry not right
Liverpool have not been at their fluent best so far this season(Image: Liverpool FC, Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
It’s not just defensively that Liverpool have issues, albeit goals have not been hard to come by at the opposite end of the pitch.
“You can see the chemistry is not right at this present moment in time,” former Reds striker Daniel Sturridge said on Amazon Prime, and he’s hit the nail on the head. Liverpool are still finding their feet after tweaking things tactically to incorporate Florian Wirtz and it’s taking more time than perhaps expected to get the balance right.
Mohamed Salah is a perfect example: the Reds’ talisman enjoyed his best ever campaign last year but has been subdued by his own exceptionally high standards so far this term, albeit he still has three goals and three assists to his name. Getting the best out of Salah and the Reds’ other big-money signings in attack in Wirtz, Alexander Isak and Hugo Ekitike is key.
3. Better or Wirtz?
Florian Wirtz has struggled at Liverpool since his summer transfer(Image: PA)
Wirtz has dominated the narrative so far this season following his £116million move from Bayer Leverkusen. Unfortunately for Liverpool and the Germany star, it’s not for the right reasons. It’s now eight games without a goal contribution for a player who did the extraordinary on an almost weekly basis in the Bundesliga but has looked rather ordinary in the early days of his Premier League career.
He – quite understandably – looks a player bereft of confidence after such a start to life at Anfield. Jamie Carragher called for Wirtz to be taken out of the firing line after the Galatasaray game, saying: “Right now, the balance of the team is not right, and the obvious one that stands out is Florian Wirtz, who is just not at the races at all. He’s a young boy, coming to a new league, and has plenty of time to go.
“But right now, he needs to come out of the team, Liverpool go back to what they were last season, and try to build some confidence and some stability. Right now it looks like a mess.”
The reality is that Slot has yet to find a way to get the best out of Wirtz. Given he was their marquee summer signing, it’s not as though he won’t be persevered with, so finding a solution to the Wirtz dilemma may well be Slot’s most pressing issue right now.
4. Decide on best team
Arne Slot still doesn’t know his best team(Image: 2025 Liverpool FC)
After challenging on four fronts last season and spending almost £450m on new signings, Slot and Liverpool were always likely to rotate more this season with the Reds boss even confirming as much himself. But a daunting away trip to Galatasaray was probably not the opportune moment to experiment with Jeremie Frimpong in a more advanced role ahead of Dominik Szoboszlai.
It still feels like Slot is still discovering his best team after a big transfer window. Ekitike has probably made the strongest impression out of the Reds’ new signings, but even his spot in the team is unclear when Isak is fully fit and firing.
Things will settle down once Slot can work out his best team. And to be fair to him, he hasn’t really had the opportunity to do that as of yet.
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