Inside Liverpool set-piece woes and how Anfield chiefs plan to fix Reds' 'killer' problem

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In the searing heat of Tokyo's JFA Dreamfield complex, the mosquitoes swarmed as the players floundered.The long-throw plan was eventually shelved when it became apparent Joe Gomez, who was back home on Merseyside treating an injury, was the only player who came close to excelling at long throws.READ MORE: Ibrahima Konate posts emotional Diogo Jota message after Liverpool beat Wolves - 'My brother'READ MORE: Arne Slot faces difficult Alexis Mac Allister decision as Liverpool consider attack rethinkSlot spoke in May about needing "more weapons" for Liverpool's attempts to defend the title and while many assumed, at the time, that the Dutchman was talking about the summer transfer window - and what ultimately proved to be an ambitious, historic outlay of around £440m - the coach was also speaking about adding more parts to the team's all-round game.Liverpool initially advertised for a set-piece coach over the summer, saying the successful applicant would be "a tactical specialist responsible for maximising the team's performance in all set-piece situations".The job specification, which was published on networking and recruitment site Linkedin, called for someone with a "substantial knowledge of the technical and tactical understanding of football" and an applicant who was across the latest advancements of both the Premier League and European football as a whole.Tasks included analysying upcoming opponents and their approach to defending and attacking set-pieces, designing an effective defence to them and offering specialised coaching on positions and man-marking assignments.Eventually, Liverpool opted to hand the role internally to Aaron Briggs, who had arrived the previous summer as part of Slot's newly-formed back-room team as a first-team individual development coach before giving the set-piece duties exclusively in September.The fact that Liverpool's ability to defend set-pieces has got considerably worse at a time when Briggs's sole focus is now on that area of the game speaks to how much the preparatory work is hostage to the variables on the pitch on the day itself, but there can be no denying it simply hasn't been good enough so far for the Premier League champions, regardless of where you apportion the blame.If modern football, however, is now a space that celebrates its set-piece coaches, like Arsenal's Nicolas Jover - who has had mural of his likeness painted outside the Emirates, without irony - is it only fair to criticise those whose teams are under-performing in those same metrics? And also on the league table because with a little bit better balance on set pieces I think it is fair to say we would have four, five, six points extra."Speaking after his side shipped their 12th set-piece goal of the term on Saturday, Slot added: "In the last two games we conceded a set-piece but we were able to win and that hasn't happened that many times this season.

He says: "It's something we have to improve. It's a process and we have to keep trying to do it.

It's about repetition, training, analysing, it's something we have to improve. We have defended so many set-pieces very well.