Brentford Dominate and Expose Liverpool’s Flaws

Liverpool are enduring their worst stretch of the season. After an encouraging midweek win in Europe over Eintracht Frankfurt, the Reds once again stumbled in the Premier League, losing to a sharp and disciplined Brentford side that took full advantage of their weaknesses.

Keith Andrews’ men executed their plan to perfection, using their trademark long throws and lightning-fast transitions to unbalance Liverpool’s defense. The opener came from a classic set play — a long throw into the box, a flick at the near post, and Dango Ouattara finished the move past Giorgi Mamardashvili for the 1-0 lead.

Instead of waking up, Liverpool fell further behind. Before halftime, a costly turnover by Hugo Ekitike in midfield allowed Mikkel Damsgaard to slip a perfect through ball to Kevin Schade, who outpaced Ibrahima Konaté and calmly beat the helpless goalkeeper to make it 2-0.

The Reds managed to pull one back before the break when Milos Kerkez tapped in a cross from Conor Bradley, but that spark of hope quickly faded in the second half.

VAR Drama and a Late but Futile Reaction

The second half was chaotic and disorganized for Liverpool. A foul by Virgil van Dijk on Ouattara at the edge of the box went to VAR review, which ultimately ruled it was inside the area. Igor Thiago, outstanding all match, converted the penalty with confidence to restore Brentford’s two-goal lead at 3-1.

Mohamed Salah broke his six-game scoring drought with a brilliant chest control and top-corner finish off a cross from Dominik Szoboszlai in the 88th minute, but it was too little, too late.

This Liverpool side looked unrecognizable — riddled with defensive errors, lacking balance in midfield, and with key players like Milos Kerkez and Florian Wirtz struggling to make an impact. The loss drops them to sixth place with 15 points, one behind Manchester United, while Brentford climb to tenth with 13 points, continuing an impressive start to the season despite the summer departures of Bryan Mbeumo and Christian Norgaard.

There’s growing concern at Anfield: with matches against Crystal Palace, Aston Villa, and Real Madrid on the horizon, time is running out for Slot and his team to turn things around.