Topics: Liverpool, Chelsea, Premier League, Gary Neville, Arne Slot, Ibrahima Konate, Football
Gary Neville has claimed that a Liverpool player’s performance in the 2-1 defeat to Chelsea annoyed head coach Arne Slot.
Liverpool conceded a last-gasp winner for the second time in two Premier League matches, at Stamford Bridge on Saturday night.
Chelsea went ahead thanks to Moises Caicedo’s long-range strike on 14 minutes before Cody Gakpo equalised on 63 minutes after taking advantage of Alexander Isak’s deft touch in the Blues penalty area.
And the match appeared to be heading for a draw despite the likes of Mohamed Salah and Florian Wirtz’s best efforts to find the away side a winner.
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But it was Chelsea who secured the three points when, on 95 minutes, Marc Cucurella found 18-year-old Brazilian winger Estêvão, who made no mistake sliding the ball in at the far post.
Several Liverpool players put in below-par performances on the night, with many homing in on Alexis Mac Allister for his lacklustre showing in the heart of midfield.
Meanwhile, Sky Sports commentator and former Manchester United right-back Neville claimed that another Liverpool star was even “annoying” Slot, which led to his withdrawal on 56 minutes.
Centre-back Ibrahima Konate has been poor in recent weeks, and that didn’t change at Stamford Bridge.
“If you watch Konate on the ball at the start of the second half, he was just walking with it,” Neville said on Sky Sports during the game.
“It was frustrating and annoying me, to be honest. I think he was annoying Arne Slot as well because he’s decided to get someone on is better on the ball at the back but can’t defend as well. He’s going all in.”
After Konate was replaced by Curtis Jones, usual centre-midfielder Ryan Gravenberch dropped into defence and did a fairly decent job.
The defeat is Liverpool’s third consecutive loss in just over a week, which now leaves them second, one point behind Premier League leaders Arsenal, who beat West Ham 2-0 at the Emirates on Saturday, after seven games.
After the match, Slot explained the reason for Konate's withdrawal.
"He felt his quad a bit," Slot explained. "Then alarm bells go off with me. If the game had gone on like this I would have made the change a bit later but did not want to take the risk. It wasn't a coincidence when Ryan (Gravenberch) started to play there we started getting more and more in the game."
The Reds will return to Premier League action against Manchester United on Sunday, 19 October, after the upcoming international break.
