Concerns about concession from set-pieces

Liverpool's Achilles' heel refuses to heal

As 2025 draws to a close, the Reds sit in fourth place after grinding out a 2-1 win over Wolves at Anfield on December 27. Ryan Gravenberch's cool opener and Florian Wirtz's maiden goal for the club delivered the points, extending an unbeaten run to seven games. Yet the narrative post-match wasn't about celebration it was about yet another avoidable concession from a set-piece.

Santiago Bueno's second-half header from a corner sliced the lead in half, turning what should have been a comfortable afternoon into a tense scrap. That goal took Liverpool's tally of set-piece concessions in the Premier League this season to **12**—joint-highest alongside Bournemouth and Nottingham Forest. Only Bournemouth (12) and a couple of others match or exceed it. At the other end? Just three set-piece goals scored (excluding penalties), leaving a net deficit that stands as one of the worst in the division.

Virgil van Dijk didn't mince words after the final whistle: "We have defended so many set-pieces very well. But the fact is we've conceded too many goals like that and it hurts. We have to improve that. ... The second phase is a killer."

The captain's frustration is palpable. He knows the team drills these situations relentlessly, yet concentration lapses, poor marking in the second phase, and a lack of aerial aggression keep letting opponents back into games.

Manager Arne Slot echoed the sentiment, framing it as both a Liverpool-specific issue and a league-wide trend where dead-ball situations increasingly decide outcomes:

"I know the importance of it, it gets more and more... that's why we are so annoyed by our current record."

Slot has pointed out that excluding set-piece goals, Liverpool would likely sit five or six points higher in the table—such is their dominance from open play (top for chance creation in many metrics). But results don't come with asterisks. The manager has been blunt: without fixing this, a genuine top-four (or higher) push becomes "impossible."

The irony is stark. Last season, under different circumstances, the Reds barely conceded from set pieces. This campaign despite heavy summer investment and the arrival of a dedicated set-piece coach in Aaron Briggs the numbers have flipped dramatically. Alisson's command of his box has been solid but not infallible, and the outfield unit lacks the same ruthlessness that once defined Liverpool at dead balls.

With Leeds United up next on New Year's Day, the message from the coaching staff is clear: more intensity in training, sharper focus on second-phase battles, and zero tolerance for the "killer" moments. The talent is there. The open-play football is electric. But until the set-piece bleeding stops, every victory will feel like it's earned the hard way and every dropped point will sting that little bit more.

Fix this, and the ceiling rises dramatically. Ignore it, and fourth place might be the realistic summit rather than the floor.

YNWA. 🔴