Arne Slot needs to redefine how Liverpool control games with midfield balance

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For all the precision and possession, the control that defined Slot’s best work has faded, leaving a team elegant in design but fragile in practice. The addition of Wirtz has made Liverpool’s midfield more creative and beautifully connected, capable of retaining possession and threading sequences through the tightest of spaces.

Slot’s design depends on compression, with defence, midfield and attack moving as one so that when possession is lost, the team collapses inward and closes the gaps before opponents can breathe. That same structure would let Liverpool keep Wirtz’s creativity without sacrificing control.

Slot’s football depends on precision and awareness, but right now the midfield triangle feels disjointed. The team still has the quality and the identity to challenge for everything, but control in football isn’t measured by how long you keep the ball.