Slot's substitutes save the day at the City Ground
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All right, Reds. Tony Evans here with Walk On, your Liverpool podcast from The Athletic. I'm here with James Pearce and Simon Hughes. Well, the point at the city grounds against Nottingham Forest. Diogo Giota came off the bench to rescue the draw.

It could have been so much more. It should have been more, shouldn't it? The three points were there for the taking in the second half. We'll look at what that draw with Forrest means for the title race, touch on the transfer market and look forward to Brentford at the weekend. But we'll start with those three words. Si, I'm going over to you. And this week, I'm not going to slag you, not once. Thanks, thanks. Unfiltered Premier League. Unfiltered Premier League.

I'll have to give that a bit of thought. James. Thank you, Diogo. Well, here's what you're seeing. Aidan Hanna, slow first half. That's right, Aidan. Rob Mason, Bayard's offender. Chris Gordon, genius slot substitutions. That's easy for you to say, isn't it? Stephen Buchanan, jotter the slotter. To join our community of listeners on Facebook, just search Walk On Podcast and join the group.

Well, we knew, James, how important before the game the first goal would be. And, of course, they conceded it and gave themselves a lot of work to do. I mean, is this getting to be a bit of a habit?

Yeah, I think the slow starts has been a feature of the season, hasn't it? I think that was the frustration that you'd imagine they must have talked about the fact that they knew the city ground was going to be absolutely bouncing. And the last thing you wanted to do was to fuel that by giving them encouragement. And that's exactly what Liverpool did.

conceding from their first attack and it was such a poor goal to concede wasn't it like especially when you against a team that are just relying solely on counter-attacks aren't going to take many risks yeah it was just a bit of a bizarre one where you know obviously Kanate I think was

wins like an initial header but then doesn't seem particularly aware of his surroundings he's a lot further up the field than van Dijk is which means there's a there's a huge gap there that Alanga's pass exposes and it's a brilliant finish from Wood but yeah I thought Liverpool just in general 45 minutes I know afterwards Slott described it as you know total domination throughout but

For me, that wasn't domination in the first half. Liverpool had the ball, but they did absolutely nothing with it. And that was very similar to the game against Forest in

at Anfield in September. The difference in the second half was huge because I thought they played with a much better tempo. The decision-making was a lot better. They actually stretched Forrest. The passing was better and they created so much more. So, yeah, it was a strange night to make sense of, I thought, because in the end, you're frustrated that Liverpool didn't win the game. Such was their dominance in the last 20 games.

But I think overall relief that they managed to get something out of it, considering the way the night started. Yes, I mean, that's the fifth time in the past seven games, Premier League games, that they've conceded first. And they've drawn four of the last seven in that time. I mean, is this a blip? Well, you're sort of hoping that it is, obviously, because, I mean, they haven't lost the last two games, which...

On another day, they may have lost. As James said, it was a strange game to sort of analyse yesterday because I thought Liverpool, they weren't knocking on the door in the first half, they were sort of tapping on it. Lots of decent approach play, but when it really mattered, the final pass or the pass before the final pass just wasn't good enough, wasn't sharp enough.

second half performance I thought was excellent and created more than enough chances to win the game obviously Nottingham Forest goalkeeper I thought made some outstanding saves three really really match defining saves really so on that basis you're a bit disappointed but I think in terms of the form Liverpool have got a good run of fixtures coming up I think you know the next three or four games ordinarily a championship winning team would be winning those games but

So Liverpool win those games. The last couple of games will be all but forgotten, I guess, and will be reflected upon as Liverpool's blip in the season, perhaps. They were lucky against Manchester United. They played much better against Forest, but could have arguably won or lost either game. They weren't necessarily in control, certainly, of the Forest game, even though they dominated the ball.

I always felt that Forrest knew exactly what they were doing. Just a very interesting game of football, really, Tony, I thought. Yeah, James, on paper you say they should be beating sides like Forrest. But, I mean, they're a good team. They're a good team and they played well. And, I mean, when you think they've taken four points off us this season, you know, that's quite impressive. But I think Si said something that I think is worth picking up on.

The lack of control of games, recent games, early on in the season. You know, they were getting in the lead. They were getting there, then shutting the game down. That seems to have been... So 2024? Yeah, yeah, yeah. I think the goal they conceded was symptomatic of how they have become more open and easier to get at at times. I thought the game at Tottenham in the Carabao Cup was similar to that in terms of like...

It just felt like it was too easy to get at Liverpool at specific moments. And to be fair, Forest, their whole strategy is around kind of, you know, not taking risks and not overcommitting players forward. And actually, they feed off opposition mistakes, Forest, don't they? They wait for you to lose the ball and then it's like, bang, they've got pace and they can be very direct on the counter-attack. But...

Yeah, it has been a feature. I mean, to drop points in four of the last seven Premier League games, there has been a shift. And it's a tricky one, isn't it? Because I think you look at each of those games and you kind of think, well, Newcastle away, you look at the form they're in now. I don't think that's a bad point. Fulham at home, of course, was the early red card, which I mean, in the end, Liverpool probably should have won that game. The fact they didn't, you couldn't be critical of because of the, you know, being a man down for so long.

United at home was just a bad day at the office where I think everyone, including the fans, expected it to just be a walk in the park. And then, you know, as much as you look at it and go, well, Liverpool should be beating a team like Forest. Well, very few teams have this season. They are horrible to play against. And the city ground was absolutely bouncing.

they make life very difficult, don't they? They make games so stop-start, they're in your face. I think they push the boundaries, whether it's in terms of the physical side, also in terms of players going down and killing the flow of a game when you have got momentum behind you. So as annoying as it was not to avenge that defeat at Anfield in September...

I came away thinking overall, I think that's actually a good point for Liverpool. So do you agree? Good point, bad point? Yeah, I think it is a good point because you've got to look at the context of what is going on elsewhere as well. I mean, Chelsea dropped points again. Obviously, Forest dropped points because they play Liverpool. So it sort of maintains the position really. And as I said, Liverpool have got, I would say, a good run of fixtures coming up.

where they're now, you know, there's still six points above Nottingham Forest. Is it seven above Arsenal? Is that right? It is, yeah. With a game in hand as well. Is that right? No game in hand now, is it? Arsenal have yet to play at the time of recording.

Yeah, okay, okay. The only concern is, Arsenal are obviously still a concern. I think obviously they've got problems in attack, I think, but they've got a lot of their tough away games out the way. Liverpool have got quite a few to come. But Liverpool have got an opportunity, I think, over the next few weeks to run up a bit of a head of steam, if they get it right. And, you know, teams...

tend to drop points around this stage of the season even the teams when there's a title race on between a number of teams it tends to be that at this stage of the season this is where multiple teams drop points if you go through the Premier League history even when Liverpool went head to head with City on a couple of occasions it was across this period where there was little points dropped here and there

I think it wasn't a bad point last night. I think it was encouraging that Liverpool played the way they did the second half and they stuck at it. You know, as I say, they tapped on the door the first half, but they kept on doing what they were trying to do, but did it better the second half. As a right old goal, on another day, if the goalkeeper doesn't play as extraordinarily well as he does, Liverpool probably end up winning the game.

I think you've got to give Forrest credit. They stuck at it as well. The two centre-halves were like, you know, civil guards, weren't they? Civil guards? Yeah, they were like horrible. Guards of Civil in Spain or something. I don't know. These military police, they were like, the two of them, like, they weren't afraid of you. That's a brilliant addition to the book of football cliches. It must go in.

I can't be a cliche yet. But yeah, I thought they were very good. But, you know, Liverpool found a way past them in the end and could have scored more, but for the goalkeeper. So I feel like it's a good point and one that they might look back on as one that's valuable. Simicast's first touch is to take the corner. It's not a bad one, it's brought the goal. And it's glanced in by Jota.

Well, what a substitution that was from Slott! Jotter. James. 22 seconds after coming on. Scores the equaliser. If he remains fit, he's got to be the first choice, hasn't he? Yeah, 100%. I thought it wasn't just the goal. It was everything he gave Liverpool after that as well. I just thought they were a different beast with him leading the line. It's taken him a while, hasn't it, to get back

to where he was before that you know that horrible chest injury he suffered against Chelsea in October comes off the bench and scores in that that draw against Fulham in mid-December but then he suffered discomfort again and so Slott has managed him really carefully a lot of his a lot of his game time has been off the bench you know yeah I think we've seen that he he hasn't

been able to get back to that kind of rhythm that you need. But I thought he looked a lot stronger, a lot sharper. Playing Diaz through the middle has worked well in some games. It didn't work against Forrest because I think he struggled with the physicality of those centre-halves. But Jota relishes a scrap like that, doesn't he? He's combative. He doesn't take any backward steps and

The only frustration, of course, for him, as he said when he spoke afterwards, was the fact that he didn't go on and score the winner because he had two other great chances where he was denied by the heroics of cells. And yeah, the fastest...

goal by a Liverpool substitute in Premier League history and I think you've got to give slot a lot of credit because although although the Simmercast for Robertson sub was a no-brainer because Robertson I thought really struggled throughout I don't think many people would have predicted that that Jota would be coming on for Canate but

but the more I thought about it, the more I thought it did make sense because Forest were dropping deeper and deeper. They were showing less and less ambition. So with the amount of ball Liverpool had, it probably would have been a waste to have had two centre-halves on the pitch. Dropping Gravenberg deeper worked well, I thought, in terms of helping Liverpool really kick on in that last 20-25 minutes. And

And yeah, Jota was absolutely integral to suddenly Liverpool causing Forrester kind of problems they hadn't been able to in the kind of hour plus previously. Just touching on what James said there, I was really impressed by Slott's reactions, unlike the Manchester United game when I don't think he did react to some of the problems previously.

I thought the use of Gravenberg was very interesting, something that we haven't really seen from a Liverpool manager for quite some time. I'd say, you know, Klopp was very, very much... He trusted the system they had in place and the formation and the shape, and he wouldn't really deviate from that. Whereas with Gravenberg yesterday, it was almost like...

Went back for the goal kicks and the set pieces, but then pushed up into midfield for when Liverpool had the ball. I thought it was a very clever move, which helped the team move forward and get a grip of their midfield. That's the sort of thing that I think, you know, a manager who's thinking about the game is good at. So, yeah, it was a very big tick for Arnish last night because I thought it had a big bearing on Liverpool's second half performance. He's going to have to come up with another solution, I think, for that left-back area because...

It's not getting any better for Robertson, isn't it, at the moment? Certainly since that Fulham... You mentioned the Fulham game earlier where he got the red card. He hasn't really had an afternoon where you thought that was quite a comfortable afternoon for him, where you didn't notice him. You sort of noticed him more and more for the wrong reasons. I mean, we've talked about his poor form before this season, but...

But it is now really building into a significant issue. And Simakas probably isn't the answer long term. Well, the thing is, Simakas, we know his delivery is good. You know, he's contributed in big moments over the last couple of years, you know, with good corners. Was it with League Cup final last year, he put the corner in for Virgil van Dijk to score. Obviously, he did it again yesterday.

Delivery has never been a problem with him. I'd say his crossing ability is very, very good. It's more of his defensive capabilities that come into question. You know, when you get a really good winger having a go at him, he finds it quite hard. We can maybe reassess Robertson to some extent because there was just basics yesterday that he was getting wrong. So even like his corners, I mean, just before he went off, he took a corner, which was just...

There's one over hit, one under hit. And maybe I'm beginning to think, is it more of a confidence thing with him rather than this collapse of pace, which people have spoken about quite a lot, you know, saying, you know, he's lost the yard. But you see, he's clearly lacking confidence at the moment because whether you've got pace or not, the ability to kick the ball doesn't go, does it? And at the moment, some of his decision making on the ball is a bit rash, you know, in terms of clearances and

He had a really awkward night. So, yeah, I mean, I thought Simakas did well when he came on aside from his assist, but certainly he's one of those players that I just think that you can afford to use in little moments, but you wouldn't want to back over the course of a longer period, really. So it's something for Slott to think about. ♪

Which, James, brings us neatly to transfers. And of course, you know, we hold you responsible for all the business Liverpool Football Club do, or don't do, even worse. So, I'll be looking at a left back, either now or in the summer. And what else is going on in the wonderful Wales of the transfers?

I would be amazed if Liverpool signed a left-back this month.

I don't see a world where Liverpool would operate with three senior left-backs for the second half of the season. I just think that would be such an un-Liverpool-like thing to do. And I certainly don't see either Robertson or Simakas leaving the club in the next fortnight. So I still think the time to properly make a judgment call on that is in the summer season.

I still hope that Andy Robertson, as Simon said, I think a lot of it is confidence related currently. And I think he will know better than anyone that he's been in probably the worst run of form that he's had since he joined Liverpool because he's been such an incredible player.

you know figure in terms of consistency but I still believe he can he can turn it around I just I don't I don't like this kind of modern thing of just completely writing someone off but we had it didn't we with you know different situation but we had it with Salah in the second half of last season how many people were saying then that he was finished and all the rest of it so

I think Slott has certainly got a big call to make there in terms of what he does. I'd expect Simakas to probably start at Brentford on Saturday. But at the moment, in terms of incomings, it's very quiet. And I think that was always going to be the way. I mean, you look at the bench at Forest and it was strong. Everyone always wants more, don't they? And of course,

another midfielder, another defender would be beneficial because every, you know, you always want more options. And I think, I think part of the psyche is also the memory of last season when the challenge faded so badly and,

And that thought of if only had been another couple of extra bodies, if you like, to give you that extra depth. But, you know, the bench at the city ground, you know, Bradley, Chiesa, Elliott, Endo, Jones, Kelleher, Kwanza, Jota, Simakas, you know, Nunes to come back. He'd be back available on the weekend and been banned. You know, Gomez a couple of weeks away, supposedly for that hamstring issue.

that he's had and then you've got you know the young players like Dans and Ngomoa and McConnell and people like this that did well when they stepped up against Accrington so yeah at the minute it's quiet in terms of incomings and outgoings you know there was there's been a lot of noise around Nunes and there were some reports that Liverpool had turned down 70 million from Saudi for him I mean that

I was told... £70 million from Saudi? They bite their hands off! Sometimes with some of these rumours, you have to take a step back and just say to yourself, is this even plausible? And not even the Saudis would offer £70 million as an opening bid for a player who...

has struggled so far this season. And that's actually more than Liverpool initially paid Benfica for him. I think it was, what was it, £64 million, potentially rising to £85 million with the add-ons. So at the minute, Liverpool have had no offers for Nunes. So there's not a discussion to be had there. Sorry, let's start a rumour. Who would you bring in if you had the chance? Ha ha ha!

My knowledge of European football isn't what it used to be. I mean, I know what sort of positions I'll be looking at. The thing is, you can't...

You can't really talk about this season without talking about next season, can you? You know, with the obvious three contract issues that we've spoken about so many times that we're all bored to death with it now. We haven't even mentioned it yet. I was planning on going through the entire show without mentioning it. Well, let's not talk about it now. Let's just say, what do Liverpool need this season, you know, to give them a chance, a better chance of winning the league this

I mean, I do think keeping Jota fit is crucial. I've said that all along. I mean, I thought at the start of the season, you keep him fit, you're guaranteeing 15 to 20 goals from your number nine, really.

And again, yesterday just underlined that. I mean, all the problems Liverpool had trying to get past those two. All right, so call them Robocops this time, Tony. I know you like this sort of authority description at the back. And yeah, again, I was speaking to somebody about this before. It's like, you wouldn't think Jota

somebody like him would be able to win a ball in the air but sometimes heading the ball isn't about height or physique it's about knowing where it's going to land and putting yourself in a position which allows you to score which is exactly what Jota is very good at he's very good at the air in the air getting himself in between two defenders which he did yesterday so you can keep him fit but

it's just the big if you know I just think it increases the chances of Liverpool winning not just one trophy but a few trophies I think this year so there's that I do think that there's still maybe one player short in midfield I've said that numerous times

That would be an area where I just think they could improve. I thought yesterday, strange performance from Alexis McAllister. I thought first half, it was a bit like Trent in the Man United game where he was trying too much. It was a bit too risky, a bit too loose. Second half, he really sharpened up. But I just think they need another player in that area for me. So that would be this season. Next season's another matter altogether. I think that's when you start looking at

potentially your left back other areas of the pitch and again it comes down to availability doesn't it I mean I think you need somebody this season if you're going to sign somebody now for this season you have to be able to come in and have an impact now not somebody you're building up for next season because it's all about now Liverpool have got a great opportunity at this moment and in four competitions you

You know, anything is possible at the moment. So all the energies and focuses have got to go into the next five or six months, not really into next season, I think. Well, James, there were some suggestions that that Georgian lad from Napoli... What's his name, Tony? There is an injunction on me which prevents me from attempting to pronounce foreign names. So you tell us what his name is.

Is it Kiefer Ratzkeller? Is that close enough? Yeah, that's close enough. Kiefer Ratzkeller. I think, yeah, it's... Yeah, I mean, David Ornstein reported last week that Liverpool could potentially move for him when it became apparent that he would be moving on from Napoli, a player that Liverpool have senior recruitment guys...

for a number of years. I think I remember sitting and listening to Jurgen Klopp eulogising about him after he'd lit up a Champions League game against Liverpool, I think back in 2022. But, you know, the caveat was also, you know, much will depend in terms of, well, how much is he going to go for if he does go? Because it's not an area that Liverpool are exactly short in. In actual fact, if he probably drew up a kind of a depth list, you

you know, a left winger would probably be close to the bottom in terms of what Liverpool need at the minute because Gagpo has had a brilliant season. Diaz has also played, you know, although he's been used to the middle at times, predominantly out wide on the left as well. So at the minute, he looks like he's on the brink of completing a move to PSG, which again, the initial story from David said that they were the clear front runners. So,

So I don't think a big surprise that that hasn't been followed up because, as Simon said, I just think with the contract situations...

that's why sooner rather than later you just have to have that clarity because it has such a big impact on what Liverpool are going to need to do in the window you know this summer you could say well you know why would you not want someone of you know that Georgian players quality but it's like but is that a good use of resources if you're gonna have to replace your biggest goal threat on the right hand side of your attack if you know heaven forbid you

you know the Van Dijk extension doesn't get rubber stamped you know what's going to happen with Trent you need to go and buy another right back so and I think that's probably also linked to you know the fact that you know Zubamendi is back in the news that Arsenal seem increasingly confident that he'll be joining them at the end of the season and of course that triggers a bit of an outcry from Liverpool fans in terms of well hang on a minute you know six months ago we were told that

He didn't want to leave his boyhood club. You know, the mountains of Saussure dads were... He just couldn't bring himself to say goodbye. Primrose Hill? Primrose Hill? Is that a mountain? No. People say to me they have to go and get a hold of midfielder. What if Gravenberg, something happened to him? But would Liverpool really have like a 60 million euro...

second holding midfielder if you like in terms of especially while Endo was still there

and Endo might be on the agenda for the summer. And then you've also, you know, you got into the mix that you go back in for a player that's turned you down once already. I was told that Liverpool didn't really hold it against him because they felt that he'd, you know, come under a lot of pressure from Sossier dad to change his mind and stay put. Some people don't want to hear it, but I just think that in terms of prioritising that position, Liverpool are in a different place now than they were back then.

back in August when myself included was like, well, if Liverpool don't sign a holding midfielder, they're not going to achieve anything this season. But then Slott decides the best option is to play Gravenberg there. And we all know that he's been an absolute revelation. Yeah, I mean, Zubaman, he joins a list of...

Tumaini, Bellingham, Casido, La Vieira, all players who didn't want to come. Is there a pattern there? The reality is Liverpool is a global football club with a huge interest, but there are still other football clubs. Some of those players, you know, some of the players that you mentioned have gone to other places for different reasons. They haven't all gone for the same reason to other places, but

But it's still a competitive market. You're still coming up against some clubs with deeper resources. I still think geography is an issue for Liverpool and London. You know, not being a centre, you know, a major centre of Europe. I think that's a problem sometimes. So it's not as easy to recruit as you might think, despite Liverpool's history and where the club is at at the moment.

But there were always players, you know, Zubamendi, the week before Zubamendi was linked at the club, I wasn't saying, well, they've got to go and get Martin Zubamendi. You know, he's the one, he's going to make a big difference to Liverpool. I mean, I'd seen him play a few times for Spain, thought, you know, decent player, but I wasn't like, wow, you know, they've got to go and get him.

This is where the scouts, Richard Hughes, this is where they earn their money. I say I'm not knowledgeable enough to admit that about European football to say, well, this player would suit Liverpool absolutely at this moment in time. You can only judge the scouts and Richard Hughes on what they do. At the moment, I just think the squad is a little bit light, maybe because I'm judging it against the fact that they're in four competitions. They had a good draw against Liverpool.

in the FA Cup, you know, allowed them to play a lot of the players James mentions.

It'd be interesting to see what the manager does if they come up against a stronger opponent in the rounds to come. Obviously, they've got Plymouth, haven't they, the next round? Slightly tougher opponent. They've obviously knocked out Premier League opposition. But there's the caveat that Plymouth are fighting for survival in the Championship. So it'll be interesting to see how Schlott approaches that game. I suspect he's just going to have to play a weakened team with all these fixtures coming up.

But I just think that Liverpool's squad is just a little bit thin. And again, I started the conversation about this in relation to the forward line. If they keep Jota fit, they might just have enough. It's when he gets injured, it's the knock-on effect that that has. You know, you're obviously moving players around a little bit like Diaz. I mean, Diaz even played a little bit of midfield last night, didn't he, for about five or ten minutes? Yeah.

I thought that was quite an interesting little spell. The thing that I like about Slott is he does seem to be willing to back players just to say, go and have a little run in that area, the pitch for a bit. You know, he's done that on a few occasions. He sees players as being very multifunctional. I hate that's a very modern term, but...

I think if he's going to navigate his way through the season, we'll see more of this. You know, players maybe filling in at certain points. A bit like Dalglish. Dalglish used to do that, didn't he? I think you mentioned that actually last week, didn't you, Tony? You know, sometimes for little periods of the game, players might just have to go and tuck in in certain areas. There's no harm in that. I know it was an interesting discussion because I know what James was saying in response. I remember James said that increasingly in modern football, we don't see that. But yesterday, Slott sort of did that, didn't he? I mean, I would never have said at the start of the game...

a big game against, um, Northland Forest. Liverpool have finished the game with Ryan Gravenberg basically playing as a, as a Libra. Yeah. And I must, I think the other thing I was going to pick up on was what, one, I've had people say to me, well, the fact that he, that Gravenberg played there off the back of Endo playing there recently is like, you know, that shows that, you know, the, the lack of depth at centre half, but, you know, for a start,

you know against Forrest that was no kind of reaction to any like idea that well I haven't got a decent centre-half I could bring on he didn't want to bring on a centre-half did he because of the flow of the game it was a very bold positive move where he thought well it doesn't make any sense to keep that number of defenders on the pitch when they're dropping off so much and I think

With the discussion about squad depth, it's not so much the number of players that Liverpool have. I think it's just exacerbated by the fact that having four centre-halves is perfectly normal, isn't it? I don't think too many top clubs have five senior centre-halves. But, of course, Kwanzaa's had a difficult season so far. And, you know, that coupled with this feeling of,

you know, can Canate stay fit? You know, Gomez had had a period of sustained fitness until his most recent one. That's a fear, isn't it? And then at the top end of the pitch, it's a bit similar, isn't it? In terms of, you know, Liverpool have got six elite attackers when the goals were flying in all over the shop earlier on in the season. It was like,

you know, no one else in Europe has got this level of firepower. But, you know, when you actually drill into it currently, it's like, well, Jota hasn't started a Premier League game since October because of his injury and having to ease him back in gently. Of course, Nunes, you know, has really struggled with,

And, you know, that's an ongoing debate in terms of what Liverpool do with him. And yes, Diaz has proved himself. He can play there in certain games, but in others, he can get a bit overwhelmed and bullied, which I think is what happened against Forest. When he comes up against Robocups. Exactly, exactly. Never easy against a Robocop like Murillo.

Talking of Guarda Civil and Spaniards and all that sort of stuff, it's 20 years since Fernando Marienta's made his Liverpool debut, Si. A 1-0 defeat against Man United. Oh, we had such big hopes, didn't we, friend? Yeah. Yeah, it was a bit of a disappointment, really, because he... I'm right in saying he didn't... He came off the back of a really good season with Monaco where they got to the Champions League final. Obviously, huge reputation preceding that at Real Madrid. Yeah.

But he was integral to Monaco's run to the Champions League final in 2004. Knocked Chelsea out, was he? Was he on loan there? I think, yeah. He was on loan, yeah. He was the main man, wasn't he? Big number nine. Good outside the box, good inside the box. And you would have thought Rafa Benitez from the same country would have had sight of him a lot earlier.

never quite worked though did it maybe he wasn't quite sort of suited to the Premier League at the time but you know undoubtedly a classy player with a great career scored a ton of goals just not for us maybe in a different era just not for Liverpool no I mean there was I'm trying to think back but it was his first goal I remember him scoring a goal with Charlton was that his first goal yeah yeah Charlton Athletic away it was a lazy pass Morientes

What a fantastic goal! What a fantastic goal for Fernando Morientes to open his Liverpool account with. Some classy finishes, but never quite hit the mark. When you think that that season obviously finishes with the Champions League...

Glory, obviously he was... He was cup-tied. Yeah, but in the context of that period, you don't really remember him. It was a very exciting period, but you don't remember Fernando Morientes playing much of a role in the season after either, do you? No, not at all. 61 appearances, 12 goals, not great. Well, moving on, James Brentford on Saturday. Yeah, it's another tough one, I think. You know, you only have to look at what they produced with that...

late rally to get a point against Manchester City on Tuesday night and on home turf they're strong Liverpool have had some issues at that stadium

previously and it's another one of those games a bit similar to Forest in terms of you just want to see Liverpool get rid of this habit of being sluggish early on in games because they're not as effective as Forest, I'd say Brentford, but they're similar in terms of the physicality. It's similar in terms of the noise that can be generated by quite a tight-knit stadium and

And yeah, Liverpool should have too much for Brentford. But, you know, they're going to have to produce a more polished performance than we've certainly seen recently against United, Tottenham,

and then Forrest to boot. It'd be interesting to see what Slott does in terms of changes. You wonder whether he might possibly bring Curtis Jones back in to the midfield. I think Harvey Elliott has probably been one of the most hard done by players in terms of lack of game time. I thought he was unfortunate he didn't get brought on against Forrest. And surely it's a no-brainer in terms of

Jota leading the line you know as I said before he hasn't started a Premier League game since he was hurt against Chelsea in October but you know he is by far and away the most complete number nine Liverpool have got on their books you know the the most natural finisher um so I want to see him playing through the middle rather than rather than Diaz and I'd expect Simakas to

to come in at left back as well. Yeah, I mean, they've got the best home record in the Premier League this season, along with Liverpool's side. But, I mean, they haven't been playing well recently. Lost to Forest and Arsenal, although they drew with Man City this week. They are an awkward proposition, actually.

I just get the feeling that they're not quite as good as they were last season. Well, the away record's really bad, isn't it, Tony, as well? Despite the good home record, obviously the away record's not great. I think Forrest is good preparation for this game, really. It's quite handy having the two games back-to-back because there are similarities in terms of the way they play. I mean, I don't want to bring up

the guard to Seville again, Tony. But they do have a few players who could work at a super max prison. I'm just trying to think of all different ways to describe these, these jailers, these defensive jailers in the Premier League. But yeah, they're a tough team. And, you know, Thomas Frank has them, you know,

I don't want to sound like one of those sort of managers, but he has them well drawn, doesn't he? Oh dear. Yeah, oh dear. But off the back of a really good, I thought it was a really good second half performance at the city ground. Liverpool should take a lot of confidence from that. And even if, you know, Brentford's home record is good. I mean, I would say Brentford's

is a difficult place to go because of the way they play. But it's not a hostile stadium, is it, James? No. I wouldn't say it's hostile the way Forest is. It's not Galatasaray. No, exactly. The Al-Samian of London, West London. I mean, it is West London ultimately, you know what I mean? So, I'd always back Liverpool in a game against Brentford, I've got to say. But they have to have the wits about them. It's a very basic thing. You know, Sam,

set pieces, throw-ins, corners, balls into the box. They can't afford to take any risks. You know, Liverpool have had a good win there. Was it last season? 4-1 last season, yeah. 4-1, you know, that...

it would be worth looking at videos of that performance I think from Slott's perspective just in terms of how they navigated that game because they were very good on the break in that game remember Liverpool and hurt them not the quickest at the back Brentford as well

yeah, tough game, but I think it's an ideal game after playing Forest and the way they play. Yeah, James, I mean, it's time to get back on track really, isn't it? And it's crucial going into this run of games that they put in a good performance there. I mean, is there a case for Dar when he scores a

cracker last year there he did yeah unfortunately I don't think he's quite in the same place currently I wasn't massively impressed with his display against against Accrington so no I mean he may well have a role to play off the bench but I'd still rather see Jota leading the line as long as he as long as he came through

unscathed and it's the kind of game isn't it where I think you can kind of make apologies if you like for what we've seen in the last few weeks in terms of certain circumstances the difficulty of the games and the opponents raising themselves against Liverpool but this is a game that Liverpool have to win this is kind of like you can't keep on saying well that's a good point showed you know powers of recovery to come back again and like

If Liverpool are going to win this title, then Brentford away is the kind of game they have to win. And in Visser and Boemo, there's two big threats there that, again, I think Liverpool have to tighten up defensively. They can't keep on shipping chances like the one that they pretty much gift-wrapped for Forest. I certainly don't think it'll be dull. I've been there three times already.

since Brentford have come up. I think there was that kind of crazy 3-3 draw between

There was a really miserable 3-1 defeat when Liverpool got absolutely bullied and lost so many physical duels. And then that 4-1 win last season. So they are good fun to watch, Brentford. I think Thomas Frank, I'm a bit surprised he's still there actually. I thought he might have got a bigger job off the back of what he's done there on pretty limited resources.

But yeah, Liverpool have to win. There has been an overreaction to some of the points they've dropped recently. And I think part of that is almost like it's still part of our psyche that you have to be perfect to win the league, that you have to get 95 points, even though that's just not the case anymore. You know, Man City's demise this season means that the landscape has shifted. You know, you look at Arsenal and the problems they've got at the minute. And I think still most Liverpool fans would say, well, Arsenal are the biggest threat to Liverpool winning the league. Well,

Arsenal at the minute don't look like a team that's going to rattle off 10, 12 wins in a row. But you can't keep on saying that. You can't keep on saying, well, look, they're dropping points as well. They've got vulnerabilities. You want to get back to your best

and put out a statement and kind of also just kind of silence that noise around there. Is this a blip? Is it a wobble? And that trip to Brentford on Saturday provides the opportunity to do that. Well, I agree completely. We've reached the point where Liverpool need to go and win the league and not rely on other teams dropping points to give it to them. So that's it from Walk On, your Liverpool podcast brought to you by The Athletic. Thanks to James and Simon for joining me and you for listening. We'll be back next week. We'll catch you then.

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