Low block blues. Something that the new Set piece coach is addressing ?
Only Nottingham Forest (4.97) have generated less xG than Liverpool's 5.03 from set-pieces.
The loss of reliable corner takers from the starting XI in Trent Alexander-Arnold, Andy Robertson and Kostas Tsimikas has undoubtedly had an impact.
Dominik Szoboszlai has taken the responsibility for most corners this season, but the right-footer's deliveries from the right have all been out-swingers.
That goes against the general league trend, which has seen teams sending in-swinging corners into crowded six-yard boxes.
Of the 79 corners taken from Liverpool's right this season, only 20% have been in-swingers, shared between Mohamed Salah and Robertson. Of last season's 145 corners from the right, 52% were in-swingers.
In recent weeks, Slot has put the left-footed Salah on corners from the right in an attempt to improve this area.
Hugo Ekitike's header against Brighton in December - from a Salah in-swinging corner - is an example of how Liverpool can boost their set-piece tally.
Against a low block, the centre of the pitch is often crowded with the defence looking to block any direct route to goal - so wide areas are key.
In one-v-one situations, Frimpong can use his pace to burst past his opponent, resulting in a Liverpool overload on the flank.
This has another knock-on effect - teams react by dropping their defensive line closer to their goal.
This can open up space in front of the defence, often towards the edge of the box, allowing more time to shoot under minimal pressure.
However, Frimpong went off in the fourth minute of Wednesday's Champions League match against Qarabag with a muscle injury - and his electric pace will be hard to replace.
In comparison to the flying Frimpong, Liverpool's wingers - most often Salah and Cody Gakpo this season - have struggled to open up low blocks.
Both players like to cut inside on their stronger foot, rather than driving at the byeline, and have often opted to take low-probability shots from distance through packed boxes.
Slot's quote finished with him saying "another way is from a counter-attack or winning the ball back high up the pitch".
The difficulty with this as a solution is Premier League teams often minimise Liverpool's chance to apply pressure in the first place.
Their opponents have played the highest percentage of long passes against them, the most long passes overall, the fewest sequences of 10-plus passes in open play and fewest successful passes overall.
In essence, teams are playing long and defending deep.
To force opponents into errors before attacking the space available, Liverpool may need to do so from a deeper 4-4-2 shape rather than through the gegenpressing that served them so well under former boss Jurgen Klopp.
In September of last year, Slot said: "I prefer to play against a low block as you have the ball a lot and the other team are far from your goal."
The past few months may have changed his mind - but he will hope his side can start to fix their low-block struggles for the second half of the season.
How Premier League teams are playing against Liverpool this season
| | Premier League rank |
|---|
| % Passes long | 16.2% | 1 |
| Passes successful | 6094 | 1 |
| Long passes | 1283 | 1 |
| 10+ passes in open play | 137 | 1 |
