The story of Liverpool’s season has taken a dramatic twist—one that few saw coming. As analysts from Melbet Affiliates have noted, a team that looked destined to defend its Premier League crown a month ago is now fighting just to stay in the top four. Not long ago, the Reds were cruising with five straight league wins, including a statement victory over Arsenal and a Champions League triumph against Atlético Madrid. Five rounds in, they led the table by five points, and talk of another title run felt inevitable. But in football, momentum can vanish overnight. Today, Liverpool sit eighth, behind Manchester United and even Aston Villa, who were flirting with relegation earlier in the season.
What happened between then and now can be traced back to one turning point—Crystal Palace. In the Community Shield, Liverpool fell to Palace, a loss that seemed trivial at the time but soon became symbolic. When the two met again in the Premier League, ex-Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah—ironically now wearing red—scored a stoppage-time winner for Palace, handing Liverpool a bitter 1–2 defeat. That single moment shattered their rhythm. Over the next nine games, they lost six times, including another defeat to Palace in the League Cup, crashing out in the Round of 32.
There have been glimpses of the old Liverpool spirit—big wins away to Eintracht Frankfurt and convincing victories over Aston Villa and Real Madrid—but those flashes have been short-lived. Each recovery seems followed by another setback. The 0–3 loss to Manchester City was especially deflating, wiping out weeks of progress in one afternoon. Some observers at Melbet Affiliates believe this collapse is partly due to a brutally congested schedule. In a span of ten games, Liverpool faced Crystal Palace twice, clashed with Chelsea, Manchester United, and Manchester City, and had to battle tricky sides like Aston Villa and Brentford.
European commitments made matters worse. Away trips to Frankfurt and Galatasaray, followed by a showdown with Real Madrid, left the squad fatigued and stretched thin. It’s easy to see why this period earned the label “devil’s schedule.” Yet comparisons to last season make the contrast even starker. Back then, Liverpool faced an equally daunting run—starting again with Crystal Palace—yet somehow thrived, winning ten and drawing one of eleven matches. That incredible stretch propelled them to the Premier League title, with Slot leading the club to its second-ever crown in the modern era. This season, the same type of run has yielded seven losses instead of ten wins—a complete role reversal that has turned a title chase into a desperate fight for Champions League qualification.
Ironically, this decline comes after one of the club’s most ambitious summers in recent memory. The Reds broke the Premier League transfer record to sign Alexander Isak and brought in Hugo Ekitike, who scored freely early on. At first, the investments looked perfect. But as fatigue set in, the late goals dried up, and Liverpool started suffering the same heartbreaks they used to inflict on others. The absence of Luis Díaz—now thriving at Bayern Munich—has been deeply felt, while Trent Alexander-Arnold’s trademark passes have seemed to lose their edge.
Still, Slot hasn’t given up. In recent matches, he’s gone back to basics, reinstating last season’s trusted midfield trio—the so-called “Maybach engine”—to stabilize performances. With weaker opponents ahead and a two-week international break providing breathing room, Liverpool have a chance to regroup. For Melbet Affiliates readers watching the Reds’ journey, the message is clear: talent isn’t the issue—cohesion and mentality are. From dreaming of another title to battling for a Champions League berth, Liverpool’s season now depends not on who they play next, but how they respond to their own unraveling.