Premier League: Key statistics which showcase Liverpool's collapse
What's the story
Champions Liverpool lost 1-0 against Fulham in the Premier League on Sunday, marking their sixth successive defeat at Anfield in the ongoing campaign. The Reds are in danger of not finishing in the top four and are placed eighth at the moment. Interestingly, Liverpool had finished on 99 points in the Premier League 2019-20 season. Here we decode their collapse this season.
Anfield
Liverpool have the worst home record in 2021
Liverpool have played seven league games at Anfield in 2021 and they have claimed just one point (L6 D1). This is the worst home record in England's top four tiers this calendar year. Out of 15 home games in the 2020-21 season, Liverpool have collected 23 points and are placed fifth in this regard. They have shipped in a staggering 18 goals.
Decline
Liverpool's attack and defence have fallen short
Liverpool have conceded 36 goals during their 28 games. Notably, they had conceded just 20 after the same number of games last season. A rise in 16 goals conceded is quite a margin for their shortcomings. Their goal-scoring output has declined. They have scored 47 goals and the final tally could be way short of 89 and 85 achieved in 2018-19 and 2019-20 respectively.
Points
Liverpool's title defence ranks bottom
When you take. the top five European domestic leagues into account, Liverpool had claimed 2.8 points-per-game ratio in 2019-20. This was more than Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid, Juventus, and Bayern Munich. However, Liverpool's title defence ranks bottom this season crashing to just 1.5 points per game. Only Bayern Munich have had a positive turnaround, whereas, the other three clubs have suffered a dip.
Numbers
Unwanted numbers at Anfield for the Reds
As per Opta, excluding penalties and own goals, Liverpool have failed to score with each of their last 115 shots at Anfield in the Premier League. They have also scored just once in their last seven league games at Anfield. Liverpool are the first side to lose six in a row on home soil in the league since Huddersfield Town in February 2019 (seven).
Issues
Injury crisis and other issues have impacted Liverpool's form
Liverpool have suffered an injury crisis this season and that has led to Jurgen Klopp deploying 20 different centre-back partnerships across all competitions this season. Players like Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino haven't quite delivered as per their standards. Mane has been involved in 10 goals and Firmino have contributed with 11. Liverpool goalie Alisson has made three errors leading to goals (joint-highest).