Liverpool’s season has flipped from fairy tale to fever dream. After roaring out of the blocks with seven straight wins, the Reds looked set to defend their Premier League crown and make noise in Europe. Instead, a humiliating 4-1 defeat by PSV at Anfield has plunged the club into its bleakest spell since the 1950s, leaving supporters stunned and questions piling up.
The Collapse: Numbers that sting
A stunning reversal. Nine defeats in 12 matches, a sequence not seen since 1953–54; and three successive losses by three-goal margins for the first time since December 1953. In five days at their once-impenetrable Merseyside fortress, Liverpool shipped seven goals, a collapse that has turned confidence into confusion.
Curtis Jones laid it bare: “I’m past being angry inside. I’m at the point now where I just don’t have the words.” The midfielder’s admission captured the mood: not fury so much as a stunned, speechless frustration.
Manager under pressure
Arne Slot, who steered Liverpool to the title in his debut season, now faces mounting scrutiny. The early-season brilliance that had fans dreaming has been replaced by a run of form that has pundits and former players asking whether the Dutch coach still has the answers.
Former full-back Stephen Warnock warned that the defeats are compounding, pointing to a worrying lack of fight and cohesion.
Slot insists he is focused on solutions, acknowledging the shock of the run and accepting responsibility. Yet the optics are harsh: a manager who once presided over one of the club’s best-ever starts now must arrest a slide that threatens both domestic standing and European ambitions.
Where it’s going wrong: Signings and setbacks
New faces, old problems. High-profile summer signings have struggled to make the impact expected.
Record signing Alexander Isak is yet to find his scoring touch, Florian Wirtz is sidelined through injury, and Milos Kerkez has failed to settle. Tactical choices and limited substitutions on difficult nights have only intensified scrutiny of Slot’s decision-making.
Amid the gloom, Dominik Szoboszlai has been a rare bright spot. Restored to central midfield against PSV, he offered energy, a goal and a reminder of where his best contributions lie.
Voices from the Past: Warnings and reality checks
Former captain Steven Gerrard warned that each defeat inches the club closer to crisis, though he stopped short of declaring it one. The message was blunt: performances like the PSV night are unacceptable at Liverpool, and without answers and stability, the malaise will persist.
Warnock echoed the sentiment, urging a return to basics and a lift in morale, easier said than done when confidence is at a low ebb and the results keep coming the wrong way.
The Road Ahead: Tough tests and a fragile outlook
Liverpool’s Champions League campaign, once promising, now teeters on the edge.
The defeat leaves them perilously close to the cut-off for the knockout places, with daunting fixtures against Inter Milan and Marseille looming. Domestically, a trip to West Ham arrives first, another stern test for a team searching for form.
Slot insists his focus is singular: improve the team. For supporters, the hope is that answers come quickly. For now, the club that began the season with swagger must rediscover its identity before this autumnal slide becomes a season to forget.
