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Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher criticized the Reds' set-up midweek, and he has doubled down on that analysis after watching Arne Slot's side lose late on at Chelsea.
Estevao popped up at the far post deep into stoppage time to give Enzo Maresca's team the points on Saturday, leaving Liverpool facing a third straight defeat. Never before in Slot's career as a coach has he been on a losing streak so long.
"My criticism of Liverpool being almost like a basketball team, again it has come back to haunt them," Carragher said on his new Sky Sports show, Super Sunday Extra Time.
"This thing about it being end-to-end in a game of football, Liverpool should be dominating a game like this with the changes of personnel Chelsea have got.
"When the ball gets switched, the left winger for Liverpool is behind the full-back! Andy Robertson is a really experienced player and I'm not sure he had enough in this situation as well.
"It is far too easy to play through Liverpool and get at them. It is a tough place to go, Chelsea, but with the team Chelsea had out, that's a game Liverpool should have won, particularly after going 1-1."
Cody Gakpo had dragged Liverpool level by smashing the ball in from close range. But Chelsea was the team that kicked on again at 1-1, eventually finding the winning goal in dramatic circumstances.
"I expressed (fears over Liverpool's play) to the manager early on this season," Carragher had said on CBS Sports midweek when the Reds lost to Galatasaray in the Champions League. "He'll know that a lot better than me.
"He is obviously a fantastic manager. But right now Liverpool went from, I would call them a top team, workmanlike team last season and they have sprinkled a little bit of star dust on it terms of the transfers that they have brought in.
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"They haven't gained anything going forward but they have lost a lot defensively. I think for the manager now, last season was such a smooth ride for them, he has got to really earn his money.
"He did last season, won the Premier League, unbelievable. But there are a few problems there that he has got to fix, and it'll be really interesting how he goes about it."
Liverpool.com says: The Reds absolutely have to tighten up at the back and start dominating games again, with the international break perhaps coming at a decent time. The players will have to come back in 10 days or so having reset after a tough week.
There have been some good signs (Florian Wirtz was good when he came on against Chelsea, for instance), but there is a lot to work on for Slot. The Manchester United game, which comes next, would not be a bad one in which to get back on track.
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