If head coach Arne Slot was hoping to start the new year with a bang, LiverpoolThe first release in 2026 must have been quite a disappointment. After 2025, which swung from the sublime to the ridiculous, Premier League The champions will be hoping for their insipid performance on Thursday 0-0 draw with Leeds United does not set the tone for the coming months.
Last summer many predicted that this would be the year Slote began to build a dynasty at Anfield. But now his team is 12 points behind the league leaders. Arsenal and they are sorely lacking the swagger that carried them to the title last season, it is clear that the Dutch coach must focus on restoring much-needed dynamism to their game.
After a torrid autumn in which Liverpool lost nine of 12 games in all competitions, the festive period brought the first shoots of recovery: Inter Milan Brighton & Hove Albion And Tottenham Hotspur among the opponents defeated in recent weeks.
But despite the deadlock with Daniel Farke's side meaning the Reds are now unbeaten in eight games and one point closer to third in the table. Aston VillaThe atmosphere at Anfield on Thursday was far from festive as familiar problems reared their heads and Liverpool too often looked bereft of ideas.
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It was the first 0-0 draw in the Slots' 84 games and Liverpool's first since December 2023, when they were held at home by Erik ten Hag's man. Manchester United. It was also only the fourth time Liverpool had failed to score in the Premier League since the start of last season. However, the fact that three of those shutouts have come in their last nine Premier League matches reflects the Reds' recent attacking shortcomings.
In the first half against Leeds, Liverpool showed glimmers of attacking promise; mainly when in shape Hugo Ekiteke saw his header deflected at close range Lucas Perry after a powerful shot Jeremy Frimpong. However, after the break, the hosts had only one shot on target – a long-range shot. Dominik Szoboszlai – with the captain Virgil van Dijk your best chance to score with a header from a set piece.
Considering Leeds haven't recorded a league draw since the end of August (also a 0-0 draw at Newcastle United), Liverpool's lack of threat was particularly striking.
“To score a goal against a team that defends so well in and around the box, there are several ways to do it,” Slote said in his post-match press conference. “For some teams this is a standard position, we were close with Virgil. Another way is what we saw against Wolves when Jeremie Frimpong had his moment of magic. [one-on-one]and today he also had several of them.
“We are the team that has the most possession but that doesn’t mean much if you can’t create enough chances and to create chances against a low block you need pace, some special chances to create an overload.”
Of course, Leeds deserve credit for their fighting performance. They were unbeaten in five matches heading into the trip to Merseyside and were happy to make life difficult for the hosts at Anfield. They too could have come away with more points if they had replaced Dominic Calvert-Lewin avoided being flagged for offside before sending the ball into goalkeeper Alisson's net late on.
By this point, Slot was ringing the changes, trying to conjure up another last-gasp winner. Florian Wirtz among those who withdrew after struggling to develop their attractive game against Wolverhampton Wanderers.
The fact that Liverpool's bench has scored just eight goals in the league this season also suggests that the Slot are lacking in decisive chances.
WITH Mohamed Salah far in African Cup of Nations With Egypt and a UK record signing Alexander Isak Having been sidelined for several months following surgery on a broken ankle, Liverpool would certainly benefit from some reinforcements in the January transfer window. Despite spending around £450m in the summer, the Reds' squad still looks unbalanced. Cody Agat and 17 year old Ngumoha River are the only two natural strikers currently available for selection.
Ngumoha looked bright in his brief cameo against Leeds but was unable to spark an attack that has been bogged down by Liverpool's more solid defense in recent weeks.
“It's very frustrating,” Frimpong, who started at right-back before moving to right-back, told Sky Sports. “We wanted to win the game. I don't think we created it.” [many] chances.
“[Leeds] defended himself well. In the end the score is 0:0, it’s very disappointing, but let’s move on to the next game. Of course, we tried, we, of course, had a couple. [of chances]I think I should have bowled better. That's all I can say.”
That feeling of disappointment was evident both on the field and in the stands Thursday. With tricky away missions against Fulham and Arsenal next behind Liverpool, they must hope their attack comes to fruition sooner or later.
