By Frank Ulom
ANFIELD (CONVERSEER) – Crystal Palace have added more salt to Liverpool’s wounds after the Eagles defeated the Reds 3-0 in the Carabao Cup at Anfield on Wednesday.
In fact, it was about Palace’s Ismaila Sarr, who terrorised Liverpool’s defence, scoring two goals in the 41st and 45th minutes before Yeremy Pino added a 3rd in the 88th minute.
The Senegalese striker has now scored in three games in a row against Liverpool.
Liverpool U18 Amara Nallo also got a red card in the 79th minute.
Liverpool have now lost seven in eight games in all competitions and six in a row in the English top flight (five in the Premier League and one in the Carabao Cup).
Converseer reports that it is the longest losing streak ever for Liverpool.
Liverpool fielded a much younger team coming into the match, and the manager, Arne Slot, explained the reason why, following in the footsteps of former manager Jurgen Klopp, just to get his team back to form.
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When asked about his team selection by Sky Sports ahead of the game, Slot said: “People who follow this club know we use this competition for younger players. We want to create a pathway for them, to play in front of 60,000 people, in front of our own fans, that’s one reason.
“The other is that we only have four or five injuries, but if I have to play again, the same players. There are multiple reasons why we have lost so many games, no excuses to lose so many but it hasn’t been helpful that almost every time we have only two days in between and after we have had to play away, and then again an away game, so we keep playing the same players.
“Like for example I tried with Alexander Isak, players who missed out on pre-season, it is a big risk of another injury, and we only have at this moment in time 15, 16 senior players available.”
The unexpected line-up comes after Slot admitted that it is the “responsibility” of the players to “put things right” in his matchday programme column. “It goes without saying that our recent form has not reached the standards that you expect of us or that we expect of ourselves,” Slot started.
“This is, of course, a major disappointment, especially given the positive start we made to the season. From our perspective, there are no excuses. Yes, we are aware of the reasons and we will discuss them, but the one thing we cannot and will not do is use them as an excuse. Our responsibility is to recognise what is happening and put things right. There is no other option.
“Part of this process involves being hurt. We should be hurt by results like Saturday’s when we lost to Brentford, and we should use the feelings this creates to further fuel our motivation. Not that anyone could accuse the players of a lack of effort – if anything, the opposite is true – but how we use this effort and desire is what will make the difference.”
And, of course, it cost the former Feyenoord manager, as they crashed out of the Carabao Cup at the hands of Crystal Palace, who have now beaten them three times in a row since August.
