Liverpool’s unbelievable winning run of form came to a worrying halt at the hands of Oliver Glasner’s Crystal Palace on Saturday afternoon.
Amazingly, this isn’t the only time this season the Eagles have unnerved Arne Slot’s title-defending Reds, with last campaign’s Premier League winners also coming unstuck against Glasner and Co in a dramatic Community Shield final back in August.
Not even more late heroics could guide the Merseyside outfit to a result on the road, as Federico Chiesa’s 87th-minute equaliser was made redundant by Eddie Nketiah’s heartbreaking winner right at the death.
This will be a bitter pill Liverpool aren’t used to swallowing, but Slot will hope his table-topping side can bounce from this setback at Selhurst Park with confident displays moving forward.
However, plenty more is required from Florian Wirtz and Mohamed Salah moving forward to remain in the Dutchman’s good books.
Wirtz & Salah's worrying performances in numbers
At least Salah has some significant credit in the bank, considering his insane tally of 29 goals and 18 assists last season in the Premier League alone saw Slot’s men romp home to the title.
On the other hand, Wirtz has very little wiggle room when it comes to the rampant criticism heading his direction, with the whopping £116m purchase still yet to pick up a goal or assist for the Reds from seven competitive outings, away from his Community Shield final assist.
Journalist Mark Odgen has openly commented on Wirtz “struggling to make an impact” since swapping the BayArena for Anfield, with one big chance missed at Selhurst Park not helping his dented reputation one bit.
Salah missed two big chances of his own in East London, too, with the out-of-sorts Egyptian now without a goal from open play in the Premier League this season since the opening day 4-2 triumph over AFC Bournemouth.
Yet, in the case of the skilful number 11, you wouldn’t bank against him getting back to his best very soon, even after such a slow start to this campaign. On top of that, Wirtz might just need time to settle before proving to everyone why he cost such an astronomical fee.
Perhaps more worryingly, away from the unsatisfactory duo, there is also another underperformer who has fallen way below his usual standards, so much so that he will now be fearful of being axed from Slot’s first team picture.
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Liverpool's 3/10 star could be dropped
Liverpool had been dancing on a tightrope heading into the Palace loss, having needed a staggering amount of last-minute goals to then inspire late wins.
Off the back of a defeat now finally occurring, Slot could be tempted to shake up his starting lineup for some challenging contests to follow in the Premier League and beyond, with Alexis Mac Allister one face who could drop out of his plans consequently.
On top form, Mac Allister is a shoo-in for the starting XI week in week out, with his five goals and five assists last season in league action very much helping Liverpool clinch a first Premier League triumph under Slot.
His consistent excellence for the Reds has even seen ex-Chelsea star turned pundit Joe Cole label the South American as a “superstar”.
Still, as has been clear with Salah, even Liverpool’s brightest sparks are susceptible to rusty displays, with Mac Allister way off his vibrant and energetic peak at Selhurst Park.
Minutes played
64
Goals scored
0
Assists
0
Touches
48
Shots
1
Accurate passes
37/42 (88%)
Successful dribbles
0
Interceptions
0
Tackles
0
Total duels won
3/5
Indeed, when looking at the table above, it’s clear that Mac Allister struggled to match the intensity of Palace livewire Adam Wharton, with the Palace number 20 a standout performer from the middle of the park for Glasner’s men.
On the contrary, his Argentine counterpart failed to complete a single successful dribble, didn’t register a single interception, and failed to hit a single on-target effort at the Palace goal.
This stark drop-off in form – which has seen Mac Allister win just nine of his 21 ground duels in the league so far – has even seen one Reds-based content creator state that the ex-Brighton and Hove Albion man looks a “shadow of himself”, with Liverpool World’s Will Rooney also not holding back when dishing out a low 3/10 post-match rating to the sub-par number ten.
For context, that same post-game rating was handed to central defender Ibrahima Konate who was rather run ragged in London on Saturday afternoon.
Slot will have to seriously consider how many first-team minutes Mac Allister gets moving forward – with Champions League action also about to congest the Reds’ fixture list – with some time out of the starting XI perhaps doing him the world of good in the long run.