As Liverpool’s form continues to decline, questions are quickly outstripping the number of possible answers explaining the source of the calamity.
For James Pearce, however, after a poor outing against Napoli in the Champions League, it may just boil down to two potential options – ‘fatigue’ or ‘an attitude problem’.
“There are two possible answers. Either there’s an attitude problem in Klopp’s squad or fatigue is a major issue after the demands of a 63-game campaign followed by a gruelling pre-season programme when the injuries kept stacking up,” the reporter wrote for The Athletic.
“Klopp prides himself on Liverpool being ‘mentality monsters’ and showcasing the ability to fight back, but there was no response in Naples until it was far too late.
“Not even Alisson’s penalty save from Victor Osimhen woke them up.”
It’s hard to imagine there being much in the way of discord in the dressing room given how our recruitment team and Jurgen Klopp pride themselves on identifying transfer targets that aren’t just a good fit as footballers but also as human beings.
Character, but in a far more meaningful sense than the term was understood during the Brendan Rodgers era.
So, the question remains, where to from here?
Of the two available answers, fatigue (both physically and mentally) after a long fight for all available honours and the emotional toll of defeat in Paris, coupled with the atrocious handling of the event at the Stade de France, is the one that stands out.
There’s no easy fix for that other than to simply ride out the injuries, regroup and, critically, recharge when the moment calls for it.
Liverpool can still make something of 2022/23 but it could take a while before we see the team that made intensity its calling card under Klopp.
#Ep58 of The Empire of the Kop Podcast: Rating Liverpool’s UCL group, making a new signing… & more!