Liverpool’s hopes of a historic treble came crashing down as they were knocked out of the FA Cup by Plymouth Argyle.
Arne Slot made a number of changes to the Reds starting eleven, with James McConnell starting at right back and Treymaurice Nyoni featuring in midfield.
The changes clearly affected Liverpool’s play, with Slot’s side failing to kick into gear against the Championship club.
The free-flowing attacking football we normally see from the Reds was nowhere to be seen, with the Liverpool forwards particularly struggling on the south coast – something which was replicated by the stats.
Stats show Liverpool’s toothless attack cost them against Plymouth
Slot was visibly frustrated at Liverpool’s performance, with their attacking struggles no doubt being one of his key frustrations.
The Reds failed to really lay a glove on Plymouth, despite sitting 44 places above the South Coast outfit in the English pyramid.
Racking up only 0.44 xG is a damming statistic especially when you take into account Liverpool’s front three on the day.
Federico Chiesa was heavily criticised for his display on the right-hand flank, meanwhile, both Diogo Jota and Luis Diaz were largely absent throughout.
Slot should have started Rio Ngumoha vs Plymouth
With Liverpool’s senior forwards failing to provide any sort of spark in the final third, Slot may have been better off handing those minutes to a younger and hungrier member of the squad – namely Rio Ngumoha.
Ngumoha impressed against Accrington Stanley in the previous round, so the youngster may have been hoping to feature again this time around.
The young attacker, however, would be an unused sub, with Slot turning to the likes of Darwin Nunez in the hope of rescuing a result.
Still just 16 years old, Ngumoha will no doubt have plenty more chances coming his way, despite the Plymouth game feeling like a missed opportunity.
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