Liverpool’s shortcomings in openers: they’ve lost seven times since May in the 5th minute

Loss at Nottingham, loss at home to Leeds. Liverpool have made two disgraceful performances in the Premier League, but they fit in with a terrible start to the season. The Reds are not only struggling at the start of the season, but also at the start of games. They have lost in the fifth minute seven times since May.

Liverpool’s footballers certainly imagined a better start to the season. The first three rounds were just two points, followed by a heavy 0:3 defeat in Naples in the Champions League. Mohamed Salah has struggled, as has summer signing Darwin Nuñez.

Now it is the beginning of November and the situation is very similar, if not worse. Jürgen Klopp’s charges are only eighth in the table, already 15 points behind leaders Arsenal. That would have been hard to imagine last year, but the departure of Sadio Mané seems to be an unexpectedly big problem.

In addition to the absence of Mané, Liverpool are not coping with the entrances to games. This season they have been 0-1 down ten times, four of which they have scored in the fifth minute. Specifically, it was against Napoli, Brighton, Arsenal and Leeds.

In the remaining games Manchester United celebrated in the 16th minute, Rangers in the 17th.

The mismanagement of openings has been dragging on with Liverpool since May last season. Since then, it has happened seven times that he has netted at 0-1 in the opening five minutes. In addition to the aforementioned, Villarreal, Aston Villa, Southampton and Wolverhampton have managed it.

Now Klopp’s charges have four games to go until the World Cup, from which they need to come out with four wins, otherwise it will already be trouble. Truly, it won’t be easy, Napoli, Tottenham, Derby County and Southampton are no slouches.

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