Anfield Index

Jim Boardman and Jay Reid are back to sift through the ups and downs of another strange week for the Reds. From the exasperation of a boring draw at home against Burnley to the satisfaction of a job well done in Marseille. Which version of LFC will turn up next? What we hope for and what we get might not be the same. The unbeaten run continues but what we saw at the weekend is nowhere near what any Liverpool fan wants to see, as a loud if not sizeable minority made clear at the end of the game. The frustration is understandable, and if you’ve bought your ticket you can make noise in whatever way you choose, but Jim reckons it’s a bit early to be shouting from the stands, pantomime style, it’s not what we do. As Jay points out, the vast majority of Reds fans in the ground were just as frustrated, given the conversations underway as they made their way out of the ground. Sometimes it’s better to be quiet if you’ve nothing positive to shout about. Which goes a long way to explaining why Anfield is so quiet this season. There will no doubt be some claiming that the jeers spurred Slot and his players on to victory in the Champions League, but it’s more likely to be because the opposition didn’t play the low block that most of the world now knows is Arne’s kryptonite. With the Reds’ next opponents not known for using it, is there a chance that Liverpool could register their first league win of 2026? It’s not just the results. It’s not just the annoyance at seeing everyone above Liverpool slip up and missing out on capitalising on it. It’s not just the constant use of stats to justify another awful game. It’s getting boring to watch Liverpool, with the “crab football”, as Jay puts it, showing no signs of going away. The signs of how good Liverpool can be, the injection of threat from fullbacks being able to play out wide and create, the invention of Dom at set pieces, the continued prowess of the man between the sticks, is all great to see, a boost after the boos. But then you glance at the league table and see what’s been thrown away. Also this week there’s time to have a quick look at the football equivalent of the "Rich List" and the oddities of how the different Premier League clubs’ turnover is broken down. The hosts can’t think why one club might have half the matchday revenue of their rival Premier League clubs, while bringing in far more from sponsorship and commercial. The figures also serve as a reminder of one of the major reasons it is vital to qualify for the Champions League. Money, in case you were wondering. The new Champions League format makes it very difficult not to get into the knockout phase, and a win at home in the last fixture of the league phase will mean the Reds make the last 16. At that point, if the draw is kinder than last year, it’s not out of the question that Liverpool go all the way. But if that journey is running alongside a continued inability to win games in the league it could be a bizarre situation this summer. A nice problem to have, of course, but there’s still a long way to go. Meanwhile it’s probably all been a bit confusing for the neighbours. You win a match, but you help your most hated enemy close the gap above them. You think you’re helping your old mate accelerate to glory, but they fall over too …