Liverpool have scored just nine goals in seven Premier League matches this season — yet they have hit 15 goals in four cup games. The contrast has raised an obvious question: why are Andoni Iraola’s side free-scoring in Europe and the Carabao Cup, but averaging only 1.29 goals per game in the league?
Liverpool (Credits: BBC Sport)
It is a small sample size and still early in the season, but the numbers are striking. High-flying Brighton have already scored 23 top-flight goals, and Manchester City 20 — more than double Liverpool’s tally. Brighton visit Anfield on Sunday, where Liverpool are awaiting their first home Premier League win under Iraola.
Why Liverpool Are Struggling for Premier League Goals
Across three Champions League games and a Carabao Cup tie against Tottenham, Iraola’s side have been the entertainers, scoring 15 goals. Even after the departure of Mohamed Salah, Liverpool have plenty of goals in them, evidenced by having 10 different goalscorers already this campaign. So why are they averaging 3.75 goals per game outside the Premier League, compared to just 1.29 in it?
Asked about the gap after Liverpool scored four against Villarreal at Anfield on Tuesday — less than a week after putting six past LASK in Austria — Iraola admitted he did not really know the reason, but pointed to the opposition. “In the Premier League, we are not scoring at this level and also we are probably defending better,” he said. “They are different kind of games and different kind of opposition.”
Iraola’s side are indeed defending better in the league, with three clean sheets and eight goals conceded, compared to eight conceded in four cup games. But Liverpool have conceded first in four of their seven league games, which naturally makes it tougher to break teams down — particularly when the opposition settles into a low block.
Low Blocks Are the Key Problem for Liverpool
Liverpool have faced a low block in 28% of their games — more than any other Premier League side — while only 15% of their games have come against a high block, the fewest in the league. Clearly, a number of teams prefer to set up against Liverpool with a deep defensive shape.
Iraola has previously said he prefers facing low blocks, arguing his side will control games, concede fewer chances and spend more time in the opposition half. But the reality of breaking through is proving different, and the club made an array of signings with exactly that intention — attacking quality from Alexander Isak, Florian Wirtz, Bradley Barcola, Cody Gakpo, Victor Munoz and Rio Ngumoha.
As one Champions League analyst put it, Iraola’s style benefits from space to attack, and European football offers more moments of technical brilliance. The Premier League, by contrast, is a different test — and Liverpool’s front-foot football now has to find a way through the low blocks standing in its way.
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Source: BBC Sport — read the full story there.
