The Liverpool-Arsenal role reversal nobody saw coming

Boring, boring... scousers? The Reds have been pragmatic since their downward spiral, but as Richard Jolly details, Arne Slot must find the right balance to justify his change

- Richard Jolly

It may be a role reversal, in more ways than one. Last season, Liverpool were the champions, Arsenal the team that finished with a double-digit deficit to them. Now the champions-elect boast a 14-point advantage over their rivals, which could become 17 this evening. In August, when they last met, Mikel Arteta was accused of being overly cautious in his side's 1-0 defeat. Boring, boring Arsenal, to borrow the chant from the 1990s? It is harder to make that case when they have found the net in each of their subsequent 26 matches, have been outscored only by Manchester City in the Premier League and average almost three goals per game in the Champions League.

Now the accusation is a twist on a theme. Boring, boring Liverpool? “I find it really hard to hear, but it's not that I would not completely disagree, I would use different words and I would take certain things into account,” said Arne Slot. “I want to win as many trophies as I can, but I think I am also known for the fact that my teams always try to play attacking football and can only say they're trying to do so.”

If this has been the season when Slot's plans have malfunctioned, Liverpool's recent travails are an example. They laboured to a 0-0 draw at Anfield against Leeds last week. There was a dullness to their first-half display in Sunday's draw at Fulham. Like much else at Anfield, the problems can be traced back to their summer transfer business.