It only lasts 17 seconds, featuring nine passes and six outfield players.
Yet the sequence of play Liverpool constructed in the 60th minute in last Sunday’s 2-0 win over Brentford gave a glimpse into what life at Liverpool could be like under Arne Slot: fast-paced, fluid and entertaining.
First, the context. Slot’s side were just starting to turn the screw in a match for a second week running. Just like in the opening game of the season at Ipswich Town, Liverpool’s opponents were starting to wilt under relentless pressure. The difference in the Brentford game was that Luis Diaz had already put Liverpool ahead so there was a little more freedom in attacking areas, although not as much urgency or need to score because of the early opener.
Short, sharp passes in a more compact formation are a new theme of this evolving side under Slot, and there were plenty of movements that complemented a dominant performance.
There was one moment that stood out, though. It was eye-catching at the time and prompted a huge cheer inside Anfield, but even more satisfying on rewind in which you can see every little detail over and over again.
At this point in the game, Trent Alexander-Arnold had become a real threat as you can see from his high positioning and clever footwork.
With the quick feet of Dominik Szoboszlai and Alexis Mac Allister to also call on in attacking positions, Salah used all three players for give-and-go passes — the picture below presents his options — and almost put the finishing touch to what would have been one of the all-time great Anfield goals, and an early contender for goal of the season.
Getting in the way to spoil all the fun was Brentford holding midfielder Vitaly Janelt, who just about redeemed himself to prevent a goal. Earlier in the move, Janelt had collided with the referee and failed to stop Salah receiving not one but two passes on the edge of the area as he wriggled from right to left, but was crucially there when it mattered.
Salah immediately raised his hands to applaud his team-mates who were brilliant in the build-up, but there’s no denying he was the main player here.
The Egyptian always starts the season well and looks better off now after a rest. Perhaps the new regime at Liverpool has also given him a fresh lease of life and the freedom to express himself more when in possession.
Believe it or not, this was Liverpool in freestyle mode. Slot is very specific with his demands of “making every pass count”, forming a solid defensive platform and winning the ball back quickly when out of possession, but he does offer his attackers a degree of flexibility.
“Mo set up three or four combinations and we don’t train these type of things,” Slot admitted in his post-match press conference. “It’s just the quality of the players. We try to get them as much as we can into offensive areas, so they can create a chance. The difficulty is doing it 10 times out of 10.”
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Such freedom, admittedly in an otherwise structured set-up, is a refreshing approach from a head coach finding his way in the Premier League. Allowing players to form their own angles feels more purposeful than the transitional style of last season. It is early days, with only two games played (both against opponents Liverpool would ordinarily expect to beat) but Slot’s side have the Premier League’s highest xG (5.31), showing the quality of their chances.
Slot uses a 3-5-2 formation at times in possession and tries to get between five and seven players involved in attacking areas. Szoboszlai, in particular, is attacking higher up the pitch, as was evident against Brentford.
This is in the second half, shortly before the move of the match, and you can see Szoboszlai heading into an advanced area…
It’s the same below. Szoboszlai is advanced and, with his back to goal again, is looking to bring others into play, notably Salah.
The same happened in the second half against Ipswich. This feels very much “new Liverpool” with the forward players relatively compact, although on this occasion Alexander-Arnold is offering width to stretch the back line and open up space centrally.
In the same game, Szoboszlai could be seen racing into the area as one of the most advanced forwards, doing exactly what Slot wants by filling the box with attacking players.
Szoboszlai’s roaming role is an early indicator of the attacking intent under Slot, and the deeper-lying players of the front six or seven, Ryan Gravenberch and Alexander-Arnold, show no real let-off in strength or quality.
Liverpool have arguably the most accomplished midfield group, certainly in possession, as Gravenberch had added a new twist to their play from the No 6 position. In the win over Brentford, Liverpool completed 92 per cent of passes — the highest for over 20 years — but it’s too soon to say whether missing out on Martin Zubimendi, who decided to stay at Real Sociedad, will hurt the team throughout the campaign.
The idea of playing more compact is that the ball moves faster between each player and gives the opposition less time to make a defensive action. That was clear to see in the move that has left so many Liverpool supporters talking about the exciting times ahead.
It was slick, off-the-cuff play and — fans will hope — a taste of what’s to come.
