Despite having home advantage, the Reds were second best for most part of the game.
Chemsdine Talbi’s deflected strike gave the visitors a shock lead, and while a fortunate own goal eventually salvaged a point for Liverpool, Sunderland could have won the game right at the death if not for Chiesa’s stunning goal-line block.
The performance was devoid of the spark and intensity that defined the club’s title-winning campaign last year.
Arne Slot’s comments after the game
Speaking to the press after the final whistle, Arne Slot offered a bleak assessment of the performance that has done little to inspire confidence.
He said: “I think a bit similar to the weekend. A game where we didn’t concede a lot, we didn’t create a lot. Very unlucky with the goal we conceded with a deflection. I liked our reaction afterwards…”
“Not a lot of chances for both teams, but I think we had a bit more and we were very unlucky the second half because we kept trying, trying, trying, and we came back strong.”
“We are not the only team who couldn’t beat Sunderland. When they defend they are so compact and they are so aggressive in the press. Yes our play looks slow, but it’s difficult to find a free player.”
Comments like these would remind many Liverpool fans of the Roy Hodgson era where Hodgson often publicly made such comments about the opponents being stronger and the idea that Liverpool should be content with such results.
However, it was his broader admission of confusion that has raised eyebrows. In a concerning development for supporters, Slot appeared to concede that the root causes of Liverpool’s drastic decline remain a mystery to him.
Liverpool fans starting to lose patience with Slot
Liverpool fans would not want to hear such sort of comments from their manager. The Anfield faithful are accustomed to leaders who project strength and clarity in times of crisis, but every passing week it appears that Slot is losing control and running out of depth.
His candid admissions of uncertainty are rapidly turning from refreshing honesty to alarming incompetence in the eyes of the supporters.
The fanbase is growing increasingly restless, with many feeling that a manager who admits he doesn’t know why his team is failing is a manager who cannot fix it.
The sentiment on social media and in the stands is shifting from patience to disbelief, with growing speculation that the pressure of the job is getting to him.
With the team languishing in mid-table and the manager openly questioning the inexplicable drop in standards, the question is no longer if Liverpool are in a crisis, but whether Slot is the man to lead them out of it.