Liverpool slipped to a third straight defeat in all competitions after conceding a 95th-minute winner against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. The 2-1 loss saw Slot’s side surrender top spot in the Premier League, just a week after a similar stoppage-time heartbreak at Crystal Palace. Despite a £450m summer overhaul, the Reds’ attack has struggled to click, and Sturridge believes Diaz’s departure to Bayern Munich has caused it.
“Luis Diaz is a massive miss for me,” Sturridge told Sky Sports. “When you look at Liverpool last year and how they used to press, I think arguably he was the one who would set the press in the front three. For me, Luis Diaz, how tenacious he is on the ball and how hungry he is to get it back for his team — he brought something to Liverpool that they are now missing. I think Ekitike and Isak and Wirtz work hard, but they’re attack-minded players. With Diaz, he would sacrifice himself defensively. That’s what they’ve got to figure out now — who in that attack is going to give themselves up a little bit. In a front three there always has to be one guy who goes, ‘I’m not stats hungry.’ Right now, I’m not sure the manager knows what he’s going to do.”
Sturridge also questioned Slot’s tactical choices in the Chelsea defeat, arguing that Wirtz should have been in the starting XI. The former England international believes the German playmaker’s creativity could have helped Liverpool regain control in key moments. “I think today’s the type of game you need a Wirtz,” he said. “Someone who can create something, get the ball in his feet, move it, advance it, maybe win a free-kick. Szoboszlai gives you that running and pressing power, but these are the games they signed Wirtz for; the quality on the ball he brings is exceptional.”
Liverpool now enter the international break on the back of three consecutive losses and mounting scrutiny over Slot’s system. The Dutchman will need to reassess his attacking setup and identify the right blend of pressing and productivity. Liverpool return to action against Manchester United at Anfield on October 19th.
