Liverpool mistakes are a worrying trend

‘He’s in front of you!” screamed every spectator, internally. But Joel Matip was not tuned in to Radio Awareness.

Fourteen minutes into this FA Cup tie against Wolves, Matip was as oblivious as a pantomime hero with God knows who lingering behind them, alarmingly nonchalant as Gonçalo Guedes closed and dispossessed the defender in his own area. The ball rolled wide of the goal after his challenge, a gracious reprieve. A warning shot fired, a warning shot ignored.

There has been a worrying trend in this Liverpool outfit of late: they are mistake-addled. For all their redeeming virtues, all the excuses rolled out to justify and counterbalance the vices, there is no escaping the blunt truth. Liverpool make a lot of mistakes. Brilliant, yes, but prone to self-destruction.

Just 12 minutes after spooking the Reds, Guedes was back with a sucker punch. Alisson, in a faux pas reminiscent of Loris Karius, passed the ball straight to Guedes, who could hardly believe his luck as he converted the chance gifted to him. Thus the tranquillity of the game that Liverpool had constructed for themselves was ruptured.

Only then did they truly spring to life. Trent Alexander-Arnold’s balls became more searching, Darwin Núñez’s runs more elegant and explosive. Don’t let anyone tell you that Liverpool’s frontman is a lumbering dolt, all brawn and no brain – far from it. He controls a football with an adhesive quality, each step of a dribble the result of a dozen rapid decisions, visuals and possibilities flickering through his mind. Lean one way and he will notice instantly, channelling his run in the opposite direction to explosive effect.

It was hardly a surprise when Núñez found the equaliser, though its fashion was extraordinary. Alexander-Arnold did what he does best, looping a delectable cross into the box, and the Portuguese striker hardly broke stride as he volleyed to equalise. An inspired and effortless finish, a glimpse of what could be in times to come.

Going into half-time at 1-1, this was not a bad Liverpool performance. Cody Gakpo was having a solid debut, linking nicely with Andy Robertson, the give-and-go their weapon of choice down the left flank. This game was Liverpool’s for the taking, and when Toti Gomes miscued his header of Gakpo’s cross, Salah was there to finish coolly. 2-1.

In the past, Liverpool would have tightened their grip, drawn more blood.  But not tonight. Julen Lopetegui’s Wolves are refreshing to watch and fought their way into the game, Rayan Aït-Nouri dictating the orchestra in front of the Anfield crowd.

Yet in the end it wasn’t Wolves' magic that undid the Reds, but their own errors. A neat but predictable one-two between two substitutes, Matheus Cunha and Hwang Hee-chan, saw Hwang’s limp shot slide under the flailing Alisson to level the scores.

But for the machinations of the linesman, it could have been 3-2 when Gomes nutmegged a backpedalling Alexander-Arnold. That made three times when the ball ended up in the Liverpool net when, in a faultless world, it wouldn’t have.

These moments of indecision, mispositioning, and concentration lapses, these brief bursts of imperfection, are multiplyingwith each passing match. The machine that Klopp has so carefully constructed throught his tenure is showing fundamental frailties.

What to do about it? One of the great successes of Klopp’s reign has been a vicious, instinctive knowledge of how to fix glaring weaknesses. No matter his successes in a Liverpool shirt, Loris Karius’ errors in the 2018 Champions League final are his lasting effigy and the reason he was replaced that summer.

But the mistakes this time feel more ... unexplainable. No matter what he does, Alisson is still a world-class goalkeeper. Multiple times tonight, his vision as a sweeper saved Liverpool from being torn apart. It would seem silly to treat Virgil van Dijk, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Joe Gomez, Joel Matip, or any error-prone player Klopp has at his disposal as if they are not special, for they have done great things.

Surely, though, Klopp must find a way out of the stupor many players find themselves in for fleeting moments in matches. They have been percolating for some time and are costing Liverpool wins. Cody Gakpo can’t be the only addition this transfer window – Liverpool need to regain their confidence and solidity at the back.