'Down to the manager': Steve Nicol points finger at Arne Slot for one thing that really cost Liverpool yesterday

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Liverpool were handily beaten by Manchester United, and it has led to questions over the decision-making of the manager.Arne Slot’s side were supposed to get their season back up and running against the Red Devils after three straight defeats, but instead they lost 2-1 at Anfield to worsen their worries for the season.There were not enough positives in this game, and only a handful of players can come out of the fixture with their heads held high despite everything that went on.Join our newsletter for news & smart analysis. However, Slot will be under immense criticism for how he set his side up to play against Ruben Amorim’s side, given that many of the tactics highlighted in the build-up by pundits were used by United to defeat Liverpool.Simply, the Dutchman in this game did not change anything from his team’s previous defeats, and all of the same problems arose, with the defensive issues being a key problem.Photo by Carl Recine/Getty ImagesSteve Nicol says Arne Slot is to blame for Manchester United winning the second ballWhat Amorim’s team did very well was launch out from defence with a long ball and win the second ball consistently to then create a chance against the home side, which was most evident in Bryan Mbeumo’s goal.Steve Nicol picked up on this and believed that it was down to Slot’s management for it becoming a problem for the Reds.During the ESPN broadcast, the Scotsman claimed that the Dutchman could not spot the basics and said he should have been able to stop a tactic that has been around for ‘100 years’.READ MORE: Alexander Isak backed to emulate Fernando Torres at Liverpool – and not in a good wayNicol explained: “There are basic things that you have to do to win a football game.

And the one thing that stood out more than any to me today, and I put this down more to Slot not doing anything about it than the players on the field. Manchester United at no stage today tried to play the ball out from the back.“You could see after five minutes that this was going to be about second balls.

Winning second balls had been around for 100 years, and Manchester United won every single second ball today, whether it was on the halfway line, whether it was in either of the penalty boxes.“I mean there is there is nothing positive you can say about this Liverpool side in terms of tactics or just getting the basics right and in that particular occasion to me that’s down to the manager because as soon as you see that the opposition are not playing it out and they’re going to be kicking it long because Van Dijk and Konate were winning every single first header. !But it was the second ball that was the most important thing, and Man United played for that, and it was part of why they were so good in the first half because they played it long.“They won the second ball, and then they were putting people through. Nobody did anything about it, and it just continued every single time.”Arne Slot needs to stop bringing on so many attackersIt is not the only issue for Slot and his tactics because once again, at the end of this game, he threw on as many attackers as he could to salvage something.Adding extra attackers on did create the Cody Gakpo goal; however, what it led to was gaps all over the pitch and players out of position, which in turn created the opening for that Harry Maguire winner.There has to be a balance; it cannot just be that you throw everything at the wall and hope it sticks.