Stephen Warnock noticed two Liverpool players ‘constantly arguing’ during wretched first half

(Photo by Carl Recine/Getty Images)

Warnock saw Liverpool teammates ‘constantly arguing’

One worrying feature of the first half was the disconnect between Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate in terms of trying to hold a high defensive line, and Warnock noticed an ongoing shouting match between the Liverpool centre-backs.

Speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live shortly before the interval, he said: “There’s no pressure on the ball; there’s no intensity. They look lost in the system as Chelsea come forward. Chelsea have dominated the ball.

“Chelsea players have got the run of Anfield at the moment. The line is really deep from Liverpool’s point of view. Konate drops all the time, he’s petrified of the ball in behind him. Him and Van Dijk are constantly arguing about the bravery of how to hold the line and Konate is not strong enough to do it.”

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How can Liverpool be so disjointed?

Considering how long the Liverpool centre-back duo have been playing alongside each other (five seasons), it’s alarming that they weren’t even close to being on the same wavelength in the first half in terms of whether to press high or drop deep.

As Warnock observed, Chelsea were playing through the middle of the Reds’ midfield and backline at will, and it took some strong saves by Giorgi Mamardashvili to restrict the visitors to just one goal prior to half-time.

The Liverpool Echo‘s Ian Doyle bemoaned some ‘mindless passing’ by Konate during the first half, with Van Dijk require to make ‘a couple of important interventions’ to bail out his teammates as they looked like rabbits caught in the headlights.

The Blues were able to find a route into the final third all too easily given how disjointed Liverpool’s defensive line had been throughout the game, and the bickering between the defensive duo was indicative of how ragged the performance has been.

It remains 1-1 at the time of writing, but even if the Reds come away with victory, there’s a lot for Arne Slot and his coaching staff to chew over going into the final two games of the season.