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It's hard to assess Liverpool at the moment. Some of the reactions seem vastly over-the-top with the Reds still just a point off the summit, but at the same time, there are issues to fix all over the pitch.
Is the main problem the defense, which looks far too open at times? Or is it in attack, where the early-season goals have started to dry up, and Mohamed Salah's passenger role out of possession is beginning to hurt the team?
Nothing looks a million miles off where it needs to be, but everything seems slightly awry, which adds up to a major Arne Slot headache. While the massive summer overhaul serves as something of an explanation for the transition, the outlay also adds more expectations, and there is pressure to get the best out of new signings like Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak sooner rather than later.
Of course, the seven wins that preceded the three defeats cannot be ignored in the analysis, and they stand as evidence that Slot doesn't necessarily need to rip up the playbook just yet. But the Liverpool boss is already trying a variety of configurations and setups to get to grips with his new signings, and there is an obvious one he is yet to hit upon.
Perhaps Slot has been focusing on the wrong new signings. While the form of Wirtz and Isak will grab the headlines, Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez could hold the key to unlocking Liverpool's attack.
Kerkez, in particular, looked like a banker of a transfer, or as close as you can get to one. After a season of marauding up and down the left flank for Bournemouth, he looked a perfect long-term heir for Andy Robertson.
Frimpong was a little more of a punt, but at a price, it was hard to ignore. And next to Wirtz, he had been one of the most important ingredients in Bayer Leverkusen's success under Xabi Alonso.
But neither have set Anfield alight so far. Slot has at least been persisting with Kerkez as a starter, but with very little success, while Frimpong has failed to do much with his cameos.
And you don't need to reach too far for an explanation. Slot appears to have little interest in playing to their strengths, instead asking them to adapt to his style.
In reality, every signing requires meeting in the middle: there is adaptation on both sides. And Slot needs to acknowledge that he signed two highly attacking full-backs, more akin to wing-backs than anything else.
While Kerkez did play in a back four at Bournemouth, he was given the license to overlap again and again. Indeed, it was reminiscent of a peak Andy Robertson under Jurgen Klopp.
Frimpong, for his part, came from a back three at Leverkusen. And if Slot wanted a radical shake-up, this would be his obvious move.
The shortage of center-backs makes it a little bit makeshift, but a back three would reinvigorate Liverpool's faltering flanks. Frimpong and Kerkez would get full freedom to bomb onward, in something resembling the system that Crystal Palace used against the Reds to such effect recently.
Isak would play the role of Jean-Philippe Mateta, with service to him much improved by the introduction of the wing-backs. Behind him, Salah and Wirtz (or even Hugo Ekitike) could function like Ismaila Sarr and Yeremy Pino.
Of course, the prodigious Adam Wharton somewhat knits it all together for Palace, and Liverpool would fear being overrun in midfield with a setup like this. But in truth, that's already happening to a certain extent, and this change should at least provide the attacking impetus needed.
While this looks obvious on paper, it's unlikely that Slot will reach for something so radical. With a few exceptions, there are managers who swear by three-at-the-back, and managers who will not touch it with a bargepole.
But even if he won't do this, Slot does need to look at the instructions he is giving his full-backs. Whether or not it's in a back three, he needs to give them more license to make overlapping runs.
Right now, they look like square pegs in round holes, with fans already sick of the sight of Kerkez turning infield and playing a safe pass. Used a bit differently, the pair of defenders could be the answer to Liverpool's stalling attack.
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