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Former Arsenal midfielder Paul Merson has slammed Arne Slot for openly acknowledging that his Liverpool team is struggling with two particular elements of its play, following the 3-2 reverse at Brentford.
During his post-match press conference, Slot openly admitted that the Reds continue to find it difficult to deal with opponents who utilise direct football and defensive blocks.
The Dutch boss spoke frankly about the problems created by teams that sit deep and play long balls before the encounter at the Gtech Community Stadium, which resulted in a fourth successive Premier League defeat for Liverpool. As anticipated, Slot's team fell victim to precisely these tactics against the Bees.
Dango Ouattara's opener came from a long throw by Michael Kayode, while Brentford delivered 64 long passes throughout the encounter, representing the team's highest total of the campaign so far.
"Quite a few things," was Slot's reply during his post-match media briefing when questioned about the factors behind Liverpool's current poor run.
"It is definitely that teams have a certain playing style against us; it is a very good strategy to play. We have not found an answer yet. Going 1-0 down does not help after five minutes. We are still, even today, when we don't play well, able to score two goals. But you cannot compete, which we don't do at the moment, because we concede too many goals. That is not only the defence you do it with 11 players together."
Following Slot's acknowledgement that Liverpool finds it difficult to cope with defensive and direct approaches from opponents, Merson has indicated that such public remarks weren't particularly shrewd.
He proceeded to argue that bringing in Florian Wirtz, while losing Trent Alexander-Arnold, could prove to be costly. "I didn't like Arne Slot's comments about not being able to handle long balls and then the low block," Merson told Sky Sports.
"They just bought Florian Wirtz in for over £100 million to be able to get past 10 players behind the ball. He's a great player. He's got a good football brain, and he has the guile to unlock a defence, that's why they bought him.
"They haven't got Trent Alexander-Arnold anymore, and he was a big part of Liverpool breaking teams down. A lot is now on Wirtz, but he's struggling.
"He won't have faced teams like Brentford in Germany. The result on Saturday doesn't happen much in places like Germany, Spain, and Italy, but in the Premier League, it's not uncommon for a lesser team to go and score three goals against a favourite for the title and the defending champions.
"It doesn't happen anywhere else in the world, and that's why it can be a struggle for new players. You don't get any free games in the Premier League.
"Liverpool also have the best center-half in the world in Virgil van Dijk. That's why Slot's long-ball comments are a big concern. People are now looking to hurt Liverpool in that way. Teams are trying to get the ball forward, and Brentford had so much success.
"Liverpool will have to find answers and quickly. They know what is coming their way for the next couple of weeks."
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