Liverpool love late drama. Can Slot fix their slow starts?

No one can do late drama better than him liverpool. This was the claim of club legend Jamie Carragher after the midfielder alexis mac allister Achieved a valuable achievement by scoring a goal in the 97th minute 1-0 victory over nottingham forest On Sunday afternoon.

argentina The international’s stoppage-time heroics at the City Ground provided the latest dramatic installment in a Liverpool campaign featuring last-gasp winners. It’s a strange thing that has brought both joy and sorrow to head coach Arne Slott’s team this season as its title defense has gone worryingly astray.

The winning goal has been scored after the 90th minute in seven of Liverpool’s 27 league games in 2025–26, the most goals scored by any side in a single season in the competition’s history. Four of those goals have come against slot men, showing just how much danger there is in playing in such close fixtures on a regular basis – particularly in a season where confidence has often been weak and the absence of game-changing options has been glaring.

“My emotions were emotions of joy and relief,” Slott said after Sunday’s game. “Today we did not play a good game. The performance, especially in the first half, was not what we have done many times this season. But despite many good performances, we have been on the wrong side of the score. Today, I think we got more than we wanted. A draw would have been a better result than a win in this game.”

It was a measured assessment from the Dutchman, who has often seen his team lose by good margins this season. with uefa champions league With qualification at stake, Liverpool need to find a way to dominate possession and limit the need for late saves. But why do they score late goals in so many of their games? And what can slots do about it?

‘Mental demons’ get a taste of their own medicine!

Liverpool’s tendency to win games late is nothing new. 48 of the club’s winning goals were scored in the 90th minute or later Premier League That’s at least 12 more than any other team in the division.

The never-say-die spirit was a key hallmark of the Jurgen Klopp era, with the German famously branding his team “mentality monsters” after a late comeback win over Southampton in April 2019. The tag stuck. It appears to capture the resilience of a club, and more broadly, a city, which has often taken advantage of opportunity to rise from adversity.

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As with the captain, that intangible quality has underpinned Liverpool’s domestic and European success virgil van dijk It was emphasized on Sunday that it was the team’s determined mentality that helped them secure victory against Forest, especially when Mac Allister conceded a goal for handball in the 90th minute.

“I fully agree [that we showed strong mentality] Because when the goal is rejected, the momentum changes [Forest] The fans are totally behind it,” Van Dijk said. “They can believe this is an opportunity to bounce back after a bit of disappointment.

“But I think we performed well; we created chaos with our throw-ins and we managed to run out winners. I think our resilience has definitely been called into question at times this season, but I think today and especially the last few games, we showed consistency in everything we did.”

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Slot: Liverpool ‘got more than we deserved’ in Forest win

Arne Slot believes Alexis McAllister’s 97th-minute strike gave Liverpool a bit of luck during their 1-0 win over Nottingham Forest.

While Liverpool’s powers of tenacity are admirable, their inability to control the game meant they also faced a number of late punches. earlier this month, Manchester City came from behind to snatch one 2-1 victory over their Anfield hosts, with erling holland Got the winner from the penalty spot in the 93rd minute.

Liverpool’s four stoppage-time winners is the joint-highest tally of any team in a single Premier League campaign. watford In 2017-18 and 2021-22, west ham united More in 2021-22 southampton In 2024-25. The Reds have conceded goals even in injury time leeds united And fulhamCausing potentially morale-boosting wins to turn into costly draws. The eight points they have dropped in stoppage time this season is the most by any team in the league, changing the complexion of Liverpool’s season.

Slott admitted after the defeat to City that it was impossible to attribute his team’s late collapse to any one particular factor. “Of course, the goal is different every time,” he said. “I have said many times, the next step for us is not to trust or depend on that pass or any other decision. We are getting there. If you compare it to three or four months ago, you see a lot of improvement, but the point is that you do not see this improvement in the league table and that is always the most important reflection of where you are.”

Even when Liverpool last won the title, they often had to work for their points. Only seven of their final 20 league games in 2024–25 were won by a margin of two or more goals, while only two fixtures were won by a margin of at least three goals. An intrinsic desire to start winning games more comfortably was one of the factors that forced Liverpool to spend a record sum of almost £450 million last summer, although that huge investment has yet to have the desired effect.

While there is a feeling inside Anfield that the club’s most recent signings could power them to long-term success, serious injuries alexander isaac, jeremy frimpong And giovanni leoni This season and the star midfielder has limited his impact florian wertz It has taken time to adapt to the rigors of the Premier League.

Liverpool made a slow start due to lack of options and goals

Possibly Liverpool’s biggest flaw this season has been their tendency to start games slowly. They have scored just 13 goals in the first half in the league, their current average of 0.48 goals in the first half, which is their second worst in the Premier League era and third worst in the entire history of the club.

Only seven teams have scored fewer goals than Liverpool in the opening 45 minutes of play. Five of those teams remain at the bottom of the table. Slott’s side have managed to score only three goals within the first half-hour of league matches this season, two of which have come in the same match. 2-1 Win over Merseyside rivals everton on September).

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These figures are in stark contrast to Liverpool’s second half performance. only league leaders armory Having scored more goals than the Reds after the break. But on several occasions in recent months, Liverpool have left themselves with a lot to do, especially given the lack of game-changing players on the bench.

At Forest, Wirtz’s injury during warm-ups weakened an already depleted bench. curtis jones He was called to take his place in the middle of the park. Liverpool’s most impressive substitute was the 17-year-old winger Rio NgumohaWho impressed following their late introduction to the City Ground, reflects the current lack of slot options.

This lack of depth often leaves the Reds vulnerable in the latter stages of games, leaving them vulnerable to late attacks from their opponents. The Premier League’s increased focus on set pieces has also been causing damage of late in games, although Liverpool’s fortunes in that department have begun to change since the turn of the year.

In the first 26 matches of the season in all competitions, Liverpool conceded 13 set pieces and scored in eight, leading to the resignation of set-piece coach Aaron Briggs in December. Although Slott recently insisted that Briggs was not to blame, the fact that he has scored two and scored in eight of the 13 matches since his departure has contributed to the club’s recent improvement in form.

It’s also worth noting that, while goals have been plentiful late this season, Liverpool’s overall goal tally has dropped compared to previous years. In fact, the Reds’ current haul of 42 league goals is their lowest at this stage of the campaign since 2015–16.

mohammed salahLiverpool’s top scorer in eight of the last nine seasons, has not scored in the top flight since November 1 and has failed to score in nine league matches for the first time in his career. On the other side, kodi gakpo There have been only two goals for the club since October 25, a run of 17 matches.

With goals in such short supply, it is perhaps no surprise that many of Liverpool’s games have hung in the balance in the closing stages.

No easy solution for slots

As for Slott, it’s clear there is no quick solution to his team’s late goalscoring problem. The expected return of key personnel in the coming weeks will help, with both Wirtz and Frimpong expected to be available for selection against West Ham next weekend and Isak set to rejoin team training next month.

Isak passed the 20-goal mark in each of his last two seasons for the club newcastle united And could help provide the extra firepower Liverpool need to take games away from their opponents. His return will help in lightening the burden hugo akitikeJoe is the club’s top scorer with 15 goals in all competitions.

Starting games with more intent – ​​particularly at Anfield – could also stem Liverpool’s continued reliance on late goals, while unleashing the prodigious Ngumoha earlier in games could add another dimension to the Reds’ attack. Ultimately, however, the slot squad may require another summer of major surgery before they are fully equipped to excel for a full 90 minutes.

The recruitment of wide-ranging pace should be a priority for the Anfield hierarchy, while Liverpool would also benefit from a stronger profile in midfield. But until the transfer window opens, the Reds can expect more late drama.

To neutrals, at least, they remain the Premier League’s most attractive competitors.