What's Wrong with Liverpool?

What made Liverpool easy to beat Nottingham Forest?

At Anfield Stadium, it was as if only the physical presence of the Liverpool squad was there to face Nottingham Forest. The spirit of Mohamed Salah and his teammates, which is always fiery and never extinguished when playing in front of their own supporters, seemed to have vanished. Liverpool is experiencing a crisis of identity.

The team coached by Arne Slot was humiliated by Forest in a 0-3 defeat at Anfield Stadium, Liverpool, on Saturday (22/11/2025 WIB). For the first time since 1965, according to data from OptaJoe, "The Reds" lost two consecutive matches by a margin of three goals in the English Premier League.

Poor defense has been the reason Liverpool has been too easily defeated. This time by Forest, previously by Manchester City, with an identical score.

The goal from Forest's wing-back, Nicolo Savona, highlighted the poor defensive coordination of Liverpool. The players of "The Reds" failed to anticipate the off-the-ball movement on the right side and in the penalty area. Additionally, Liverpool midfielder Alexis Mac Allister, who lost the duel in the penalty area, was also a primary cause of the goal.

According to Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk, his team conceded too many easy goals. In the first goal, Forest defender Murillo also easily scored against Allison Becker following a scramble from a corner kick situation. "We were not good in duels, fighting, and we were too hasty. The situation was quite difficult," he stated.

Why is Florian Wirtz so weak at Liverpool?

Zero. That figure represents the total accumulation of goals and assists by Liverpool's star midfielder, Florian Wirtz, after eleven weeks of the English Premier League this season. The underwhelming performance of the second most expensive player in the league's history continues to be a puzzle, especially following the international break with the German national team.

In fact, while playing for the German national team, Wirtz contributed two assists which led to Germany's 6-0 victory over Slovakia.

In the match between "Si Merah" and Manchester City, he was once again trusted to be in the starting eleven by Coach Arne Slot. As a result, Liverpool played very poorly and suffered a defeat of three goals to none.

Julian Nagelsmann, the coach of Germany, defended his player. According to him, Wirtz indeed needs time to adapt to English football, but this is not the main cause of Liverpool's decline. Slot's team has larger issues, and this does not help Wirtz at all.

How did Manchester City silence Liverpool?

The phenomenal performance of winger Jeremy Doku in his one hundredth match with Manchester City contributed to a victory in the one thousandth match of manager Pep Guardiola's career. Behind the historic numbers of the City squad, there lies an irony for the defending champions Liverpool, who suffered a three-goal defeat without reply.

Three goals from Doku, Erling Haaland, and Nico Gonzales against Liverpool were sufficient to illustrate the one-sided match. City dominated nearly every aspect of the game.

Liverpool coach Arne Slot acknowledged that City deserved to win. "They were better than us. We had great difficulty moving the ball from the back and maintaining possession," he stated.

Doku plays a role that appears simple but is very complex for the visiting team. He alternates between sticking to the touchline and moving into the center. Thanks to his agility, City can easily break through Liverpool's pressure. According to Slot, his team was confused by the positional rotations of Doku and wing-back Nico O’Reilly.

What are Liverpool's chances of retaining the Premier League title?

Liverpool's efforts to defend the English Premier League title are becoming increasingly challenging. In the first 12 weeks of the 2025-2026 season, Liverpool has already suffered six defeats, placing them in eleventh position.

In the early weeks of this season, Liverpool has already faced a setback after losing 2-3 to the mediocre club Brentford in the continuation of the English Premier League at the Gtech Community Stadium, London.

The defeat at that time marked Liverpool's fourth consecutive loss in the English Premier League. The last time Liverpool experienced four consecutive losses in the first nine matches of the Premier League era was in the 1993-1994 season. At that time, Liverpool finished the season in eighth place.

Considering Arsenal's consistent performance, Liverpool must quickly rise and maintain the closest possible distance to catch up until the end of the season. In such a situation, every point will be extremely significant.

If they fail to bounce back and play more consistently, Liverpool's dream of retaining the title will be just a pipe dream.