Liverpool solves fatal disease and achieves renaissance, Van Dijk’s two-front battlefield

From facing Mbappe to facing Harland, Van Dijk will face different super shooters, but the Liverpool captain still has another opponent in mind. After defeating Real Madrid at Anfield, facing the next blockbuster showdown with Manchester City, the Liverpool captain took the initiative to mention his title rival.

"You can see that Arsenal are unstoppable at the moment, thanks to their clean sheets and not giving their opponents chances," he said. This seems to be very different from Liverpool's previous game philosophy. They used to rely on final kills and risky tactics to continuously lead and concede goals in dramatic games, until they finally swallowed the bitter fruit of defeat.

At some stage in the six games, Liverpool even lost the goal in less than a quarter of an hour in four of the six games, let alone kept a clean sheet throughout the game.

One week determines the outcome

However, one week is enough to change everything. Slott can look back with satisfaction as Mbappe and Vinicius failed to shine at Anfield. "It's difficult to completely control them, but I think we defended these two players almost to the extreme," he admitted.

Mbappe's most impressive scene that night was when he shot the ball high into the Anfield Road stands, attracting bursts of ridicule from Red Army fans. Vinicius and Bradley fought fiercely, and the Northern Ireland teenager finally won.

Rebirth of the defense

The right back position was once Liverpool's weakness this season, but now it has become a strength again. The same goes for the left back: If there are multiple factors that make this a transformational week for the team (the coach has admitted that the previous record is unforgivable), then Robertson's return must be one of the keys. While the loudest singing in the Kop was dedicated to Bradley (no doubt an implicit criticism of Alexander-Arnold's return), the second was dedicated to Robertson. The veteran's performance was nothing short of remarkable.

With the two sides of the defense becoming more stable, Liverpool seems to have regained its overall defensive system, and the central defender no longer appears to be isolated and helpless. Van Dijk not only displayed his authority against Mbappe, but also in the post-match interview when facing Rooney, who has recently criticized him. Shooters from different eras can attest that he was a formidable opponent.

But in addition to personal ability, success comes from the whole. "We showed great team defense," Van Dijk said. Real Madrid's expected goals value in this campaign was limited to just 0.45, their lowest value in more than a year.

Sloter elaborated on the dual thinking of the defensive plan: "I told the players that the only thing they cannot accept is midfield pressure. We must either press high or retreat deep and never give them space." He believes that midfield pressure is exactly what Vinicius and Mbappe want, and will give these speedy players space to sprint.

The frontcourt sets the tone

High pressure requires the running ability of the frontcourt, and the tireless Szoboszlai sets the tone for this. "The energy he brings to the field is amazing," Van Dijk praised. The Hungary international proved why he is Liverpool's best defensive No. 10; Slott's side have regained last season's defensive intensity up front, which also showed that Ekitic and Wirtz are effective without the ball.

Szoboszlai’s contribution does not stop there. His free kick assisted McAllister to score the winning goal with a header. "Nine times out of 10, positive set-piece balance is the minimum requirement for results," Slaughter said. This is his creed, and Arsenal, who are known to be experts in set pieces, suffered their only defeat this season due to Szoboszlai's free kick.

The philosophy of 1-0

If the 1-0 score has an indissoluble bond with Arsenal (both past and present), then Liverpool has defeated Arteta and Xavi Alonso's teams with this score. However, in the first two months of this season, the champion and the challenger seemed to pursue completely different winning philosophies: Arsenal pursued a safe victory of 1-0, 2-0, while Liverpool believed in an open attack of 3-2, 4-2.

Subsequent setbacks showed that Liverpool's approach was less sustainable than Arsenal's. Liverpool will always have the ability to score goals, but it's more advantageous when they don't need to score more. "We have the quality to hurt any team on the counterattack, but it all starts with defense," Van Dijk pointed out the key.

The truth behind the data

Nowadays, Liverpool's defensive data seems quite strange: they have only completed four clean sheets this season. One was against a team that scored 100% in the English Championship last season, and the other three times were against the top eight teams in the UEFA Champions League in 2025, two of which are currently at the top of the Premier League and La Liga.

This shows that a team with the fourth-lowest expected goals conceded value in the Premier League can still be solid when in good condition. Van Dijk might emphasize that this is the norm. "In a chaotic world, you have to stay calm and see the essence of things," he said. While Liverpool's defense has looked disorganized for much of the season, order has returned.