Liverpool have already emphatically answered one question but Arne Slot now faces new issue

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Once had to tell Jude Law he does not drive a Mini.

A throbbing sense of deja vu could be felt around Anfield on Wednesday evening.

And not just because of the latest Liverpool late show or another brace from Atletico Madrid man Marcos Llorente.

Not for the first time, the Reds opened their Champions League programme with a blockbusting home clash against a European heavyweight in which they allowed a two-goal lead to slip through their grasp before snatching a winner in the second minute of additional time.

The previous occasion this happened was back in 2018 when Paris Saint-Germain - the current holders of the competition - were vanquished to set Liverpool on their way down a road that ended with a sixth European Cup being lifted in, of course, Atletico's home stadium, the Metropolitano.

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Arne Slot certainly won't mind if history repeats itself to such an extent in Budapest next May.

More pressing, though, are the immediate concerns with a new-look team that is continuing to become acquainted with one another.

That Liverpool are already three points clear at the Premier League summit and have taken four more points than their respective fixtures last year suggests alarm bells shouldn't be ringing too loudly.

But there is obvious scope for improvement, not least in terms of collective defending with the Reds having shipped two goals in four of their six games this season.

Three of those have come when Liverpool have surrendered a 2-0 advantage, although that they ultimately won each time underlines there is no issue with either their mentality or desire to win.

That is one box already ticked for Slot.

With the Reds having had to scrap for so many of their Premier League victories last season - only five of their 25 victories were by more than two goals and eight were secured by the narrowest one-goal margin - the Dutchman has long acknowledged there were few easy tasks on the way to the title.

The drop-off after the championship was secured, with Liverpool taking only two points from their final four games, illustrated what can happen when their intensity dips even by the slightest amount.

And, speaking in May, the ability of his squad - or at least those who remained after a summer of change - to go again was an unknown for the Reds boss.

“What I don’t know yet – and that’s going to be the interesting one – is if we have this elite mentality, this serial winner mentality, of showing up season after season after season,” said Slot.

“Many teams have won the Premier League once but not many have won multiple seasons in a row – and that’s for a reason.

Second of all, that not every player has this elite mentality."

With Virgil van Dijk, Mohamed Salah and Dominik Szoboszlai having popped up with dramatic winners already this campaign, such a mindset would appear present and correct.

Now Slot will begin to discover if his new-look squad are steeled for the twin demands of challenging in both the Champions League and Premier League.

The Reds proved in the affirmative for the majority of last season when the head coach first posed the question, winning seven of their 10 games immediately after a Champions League encounter.

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Given that schedule included trips to Arsenal and Bournemouth and home games against Aston Villa and Manchester City, they weren't the easiest tasks.

Nor is it any less difficult this campaign, starting with Saturday's Merseyside derby at home to Everton, with trips to Chelsea, Manchester City and West Ham to follow before Christmas along with a home game against Brighton.

The recent return to fitness of Jeremie Frimpong and Conor Bradley, along with the improving form of Florian Wirtz and the introduction of Alexander Isak, has given Slot greater freedom for rotation without compromising quality, which had been a clear worry last season.

And that Liverpool don't yet know their best starting line-up should be seen as a positive.