Arne Slot‘s first final at Liverpool fell flat and was indicative of the fatigue that has been accumulating throughout the squad, leaving plenty to mull over for the next 16 days.
Liverpool were a shadow of the team we know them to be at Wembley, hardly mustering sustained pressure to deny a side who had not won a major trophy in 70 years prior to Sunday.
It leaves a lot of room and time for reflection with the international break upon us.
Here, Joanna Durkan (@JoannaDurkan_) and Sam Millne (@sam_millne), who was at Wembley, discuss the deflating defeat and a take a look at the bigger picture.
The good (if we can call it that)…
JOANNA: This will be a short and succinct section, won’t it?
Federico Chiesa‘s energy and enthusiasm was what we were missing from the off, a player who is fresh and ready to have an influence and it showed how lethargic others were.
I really want to see him get more minutes before the end of the season, he at least tries to make things happen and he would have been a great option late against PSG earlier in the week.
I thought Virgil van Dijk was another who showed us something, pushing the team up and at least attempting to get us going.
How did you view it from Wembley, Sam?
SAM: There was very little to cheer about but as you say, the impact of Chiesa has to be a positive.
Injuries hampered his start to life and Liverpool, making it understandable to see why Slot was leaving him out of the squad.
Since Christmas, however, his lack of minutes from the bench has seemed bizarre and it was good to finally see him have ‘a moment’ of sorts, not that it will be a particularly happy memory in the future.
The bad…
SAM: Everything went wrong and perhaps the hardest thing to take is that Newcastle didn’t even need to play particularly well.
The Magpies simply won their battles early and got themselves a lead. When Liverpool did eventually get on, the lack of quality was alarming.
Frustration grew in the Liverpool end, with Eddie Howe’s team deploying the dark arts to ensure we couldn’t build any momentum.
Even off the pitch, the fans were strangely subdued before the game as the trip to Wembley is now an almost annual occurrence.
As someone who frequently gets down about the state of modern football, I would be the first to criticise the atmosphere. However, on this occasion, there was simply nothing to get behind on the pitch.
It was a far cry from the unity on display at last season’s final in the face of adversity. Early in the second half, there was even a moment that saw Szoboszlai try to gee some of the fans up, only to be responded to with frustration by a small section.
JOANNA: Where to start? Slot’s team selection, substitutions, tactics, the attitude or something else entirely?
You do not expect a day like that from Liverpool in a cup final, where we were left questioning whether they wanted it enough. Newcastle‘s motivation was clear, we just ‘turned up’.
We lacked energy largely due to Slot flogging his trusted key players too much, he has to learn to use his wider squad if we are to sustain success across an entire season and not see these drop-offs.
Diaz and Jota are not in goalscoring form, so why not give a fresh Chiesa the chance? Gravenberch has looked half the player he was earlier on, why didn’t he start Endo against Southampton?
I can look at the league table and calm myself down but this has to be something Slot learns from, he can’t be making the same mistake again and again.
We can’t forget we’re in a great position in the league, but was this a glaring reminder of what needs addressing across the squad?
JOANNA: It is a nice consolation to fall back on after the week we have had, not that it is all over on that front either mind you.
My expectation for the season was a top-four finish and a run to Wembley. We didn’t lift the trophy in the latter and the former is only a few more points away, so we’re ahead of the curve in a lot of ways.
But the squad has holes that need addressing and it is hard to ignore, and we can discuss it without dismissing the incredible league season we are having.
The forward line needs tending to, if Mo doesn’t score – or is no longer here – who is getting the goals? If Alexander-Arnold leaves, who can open up the pitch from the back? If Van Dijk leaves, you get my drift.
SAM: As much as Liverpool were clearly hindered by Alexander-Arnold’s absence, they were effectively playing their fourth-choice right-back in Quansah, so the blame lies more at the feet of Liverpool’s midfield and forwards, for me.
In the middle of the park, Gravenberch has played almost double the number of minutes he managed last season and it is telling.
Mac Allister also looked less influential than usual, while Szoboszlai struggled to get into the game. Up front, the situation was dire.
The problem we had was that Jota was too isolated for his natural game of linking play. We ended up trying to clip the ball into him too often, something Nunez would have been more suited to.
Unfortunately, though, Nunez just isn’t very good.
This summer we need to sign players to improve the starting XI and everything else around it will fall into place. Liverpool have a good team and winning the league proves that.
However, if you want to be a great team in the modern age, you need a great squad.
If there is one thing to take from this week, at least the club and Slot won’t become complacent.
