Liverpool’s luck has now fully dried up.
Arne Slot and Co. were beginning to be known as the last-minute men, with goals aplenty occurring right at the death this season getting the Reds out of some sticky situations to ensure the victories kept piling up.
However, now, there appears to be significant chinks in their armour, with two defeats in a row, an unfamiliar feeling that the Dutch head coach won’t like one bit.
Come the end of the Champions League clash away at Galatasaray, it was abundantly clear that Liverpool couldn’t handle the intense occasion in Istanbul, with a Victor Osimhen penalty proving to be the decisive winner for the full throttle hosts.
Dominik Szoboszlai would give away that crucial spot-kick, as the Hungarian struggled throughout in his adopted right-back spot.
Szoboszlai’s struggles at Galatasaray
After assisting Liverpool’s late winner in the last round of fixtures in this illustrious competition, Szoboszlai would have been hoping he could leave his mark on another European night in a positive manner out in Turkey.
Unfortunately, while the 24-year-old has shown clear signs this season that he can perform as a right-back, he was choppy throughout in this position against Okan Buruk’s hosts, away from just clumsily making contact with Barış Alper Yılmaz in the penalty area to hand the Super Lig giants the lead.
Truthfully, Szoboszlai struggled to contain Yilmaz all night long, with the former RB Leipzig man burnt for pace right from the get-go by the Turkish winger, only to be bailed out by Alisson.
That save was to be in vain, however, as the out-of-sorts Reds number eight’s tangle with the same tricky attacker quite soon after would lead to the disappointing defeat.
Long gone is the same skilful star who struck a delightful free-kick against Arsenal, with Szoboszlai bowing out from his unimpressive showing with just two of his nine duels being successfully won, on top of losing possession a high 13 times to his team’s further detriment, as per Sofascore.
It will be extremely intriguing to see who starts in this right-back spot for Liverpool’s next clash back in the Premier League against Chelsea, with Jeremie Frimpong not covering himself in much glory either as a right winger in Istanbul.
The 4/10 star who must also be benched
There was some method to Slot’s madness here, with Frimpong well-known for his “exceptionally quick” forays forward even when lining up as a full-back, as he was labelled by pundit Stephen Warnock in pre-season.
Still, much like Szoboszlai was exposed as a weak part of the Dutchman’s lineup, his ex-Bayer Leverkusen teammate also notably underperformed throughout as a temporary stand-in for the likes of Mohamed Salah.
Frimpong vs Galatasaray
Stat
Frimpong
Minutes played
62
Goals scored
0
Assists
0
Touches
34
Accurate passes
14/19 (75%)
Possession lost
16x
Accurate crosses
1/5
Successful dribbles
0/1
Total duels won
2/9
Stats by Sofascore
Indeed, the usually electric forward option for Slot was nowhere to be found on Turkish soil, with Frimpong going on to complete zero successful dribbles from his 62-minute stint, while also infuriating the likes of Hugo Ekitike up top when amassing just one accurate cross from his hour or so on the pitch.
On top of all this, Frimpong would also give up possession a costly 16 times when Liverpool were attempting to put together some meaningful attacks, which is more times than Szoboszlai managed to surrender the ball.
Winner of fewer duels than his Hungarian counterpart, as well, it wasn’t a shock to see GOAL journalist Mark Doyle dish out a sub-par 4/10 rating to the number 30 after the match had finished, with Doyle stating that off-display was yet another performance that highlights his Liverpool career is still yet to get off the ground.
Slot will surely look to start an alternative face down the right channel against Enzo Maresca’s out-of-form Blues, therefore, with Szoboszlai also in grave danger of being left out to make the right-hand side of Slot’s XI look potentially very different at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.
