UK media drops concerning Liverpool verdict after Chelsea defeat - 'Something much bigger'

Liverpool's third consecutive defeat has left the team in a slump as it heads into the international break. The reigning Premier League champions suffered a 2-1 loss to Chelsea on Saturday, marking their third loss in a week and a difficult period for manager Arne Slot.

Estevao's stoppage-time winner piled on the misery for the Reds following defeats to Galatasaray and Crystal Palace, with Arsenal now leading the way in the early stages of this season's title race.

With the Reds once again underperforming, there are plenty of questions for Slot to answer while his players are away on international duty over the next week or so, and with Manchester United lying in wait on their return, immediate improvements are desperately needed.

As ever, the UK's national press was in attendance at Stamford Bridge to see Liverpool fall to its latest defeat. Here's what they made of the Reds' latest display...

Lewis Steele - Daily Mail

"57 goals or assists in 52 games last year for Mohamed Salah was never going to be topped this time, especially with the Egyptian set to fly away to the Africa Cup of Nations in mid-December (a worry in itself for Liverpool).

"Three goals and three assists in nine games this year are hardly catastrophic numbers, either – but for his sky-high standards, Salah is not leading this team to wins in the same way he was last year. That is a major concern, especially when fellow attackers are not as consistent.

"Cody Gakpo scored Liverpool's goal here to equalise on 65 minutes but other than that, most of their chances ended up with Robert Sanchez, the Chelsea goalkeeper, puffing out his cheeks in relief as the Reds failed to hit the target.

"They created more opportunities than in Istanbul on Tuesday, to be fair, and Salah was more involved. But it was the lack of clinicality in the final third that cost Liverpool this match. At 1-1, there were plenty of chances to win. Slot's men did not take theirs, Chelsea did."

Jacob Steinberg - The Guardian

"There has been so much discussion about Chelsea's youthful indiscipline but in the end it was one of the kids who made a 45-year-old man lose control.

"It was a wild finale, Liverpool run ragged, and when Estevao Willian delivered the decisive blow deep into stoppage time it was the cue for Enzo Maresca to leave his technical area, charge down the touchline and join the mass of blue shirts as they celebrated in front of the disbelieving supporters in the Matthew Harding Stand.

"Liverpool were beaten, their knack for late shows turned against them for the second successive weekend, and it is unlikely that Maresca cared when Anthony Taylor showed him a second yellow card. Call it the sweetest sending off of the Italian's managerial career. Nobody will be casting doubt over his job security now.

"Not after witnessing the world champions make light of a recent stumble and an extensive injury list by producing a performance of grit and style to ensure that Liverpool ended a dreadful week with their third consecutive defeat in all competitions.

"If it feels premature to call it a crisis, it is certainly true that Liverpool must act quickly to reverse their slump. The response to looking up rather than down for the first time under Arne Slot will be fascinating. Do the champions rally after losing top spot to Arsenal or do they fall into a decline reminiscent of Manchester City's struggles last season?".

Nathan Ridley - The Mirror

"Alexander Isak didn't look like a £125million player for the first hour, but his assist for Cody Gakpo's equaliser was of that ilk - if you believe that he meant it, of course. The ex-Newcastle talisman deftly brought down a cross from Dominik Szoboszlai and the ball fell perfectly to Gakpo for a simple finish.

"Replays didn't give much inkling as to whether or not Isak meant it, but it was a goal all the same - and that's what mattered as Liverpool levelled the scores. Mo Salah then had a chance to make it 2-1, only for the Egyptian to skew his effort high in what proved to be the Reds' best chance to grab a winner before their focus turned to staving off a Chelsea onslaught in the dying embers."

Miguel Delaney - The Independent

"People can of course point to available personnel, and the pattern of the game, but there is maybe something much bigger.

"This Liverpool don't yet make sense in the same way. When you look at the available players, and particularly the expense of the new attackers, it's actually hard to see what the obvious best formation is.

"Florian Wirtz, initially dropped, is used at the tip of midfield but hasn't yet physically adapted to the position in this league. Mohamed Salah seems to be missing Trent Alexander-Arnold, and hasn't yet synced with a changing frontline. From all that, the balance of the team looks wrong, and opposition sides can run right through their centre?

"There are multiple caveats to this, of course, which is why we obviously aren't talking about a true 'crisis'. Isak will obviously get fit and come good. Wirtz will adapt. Liverpool will instantly start to look better, and Slot's new formation will be more easily facilitated. It shouldn't be forgotten this is also a team coping with grief, after the Diogo Jota tragedy.

"And they're still just a point off top. But that comes after being five points clear a few weeks ago, and after so many warning signs. All of this was coming. It's always the other side of late goals, too, in how a regular need for them at once showcases character but also flaws. Liverpool are now suffering the other side, in how they're starting to concede such moments."