Alan Shearer could only shake his head in agreement as Micah Richards delivered a damning assessment of Liverpool's current squad. The former Manchester City defender pinpointed four signings that have failed to deliver under Arne Slot, arguing that the Reds have shed the hallmark qualities they built under Jurgen Klopp.
Liverpool's Defeat to Manchester United
Liverpool slumped to their 11th Premier League defeat of the season against Manchester United, yet still remain on track to secure Champions League football. A woeful first-half display saw Slot's side fall 2-0 down before mounting a comeback to draw level through Dominik Szoboszlai and Cody Gakpo, only for Kobbie Mainoo to strike a late winner for United.
The nature of the Reds' opening period against their fiercest rivals raised as many alarm bells as the club's campaign as a whole, just 12 months after a commanding Premier League title triumph. Richards believes Liverpool have gone backwards despite their substantial outlay last summer.
Richards' Criticism of Liverpool's Signings
"I think where the scrutiny comes is the signings. They've not worked," Richards said on The Rest is Football, as Shearer quickly shook his head. "Isak has been injured, Wirtz has not been at the level we all expect, Frimpong is your right winger, your right-back, it's not really working out. Kerkez has been a shadow of the player who was at Bournemouth," he continued, prompted by Shearer. "I don't know if that's pressure or if that's the system."
Richards added: "Liverpool are too slow, too passive, they're too easy to play against. What you normally associate Liverpool with is being aggressive, hard to beat, work-rate, especially under Klopp and they're none of those things. I'd like the manager to get a chance to turn those things around."
Shearer Backs Slot
Shearer likewise believes Slot deserves the chance to turn his side's fortunes around. "I think so," he said. "I think in terms of what he did last season and winning the league, manager of the season. With the issues and the problems they've had at Liverpool this year, then yeah, I do. If it were my choice, I would have him as manager, yeah."
Carragher's Concerns
Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher, however, harbours reservations about the club's direction and questioned the calibre of signings the Merseyside outfit pursued last summer. He said: "Am I worried about where Liverpool are going? Yeah, I am. I think it will be really interesting who Liverpool buy in the summer, what the profile of player will be. Going for just good players hasn't worked, it's blown up in their face. There's a lack of physicality."
"So it's on the manager's shoulders," he continued. "And I go back to last year when Liverpool didn't sign anybody, but the one player he wanted was Martin Zubimendi again, another technical footballer. I'm not saying that doesn't work. The most successful team in the Premier League over the last 10 years have been a technical football team, but we're going away from what Jurgen Klopp was, because this manager wants that. This is where he's taken this team. And that's the worry for me, is this actually going to go more of the other way? Or are we thinking Liverpool needs to go back to last season? Or is Arne Slot thinking, 'No, we actually need more technical footballers?'"
