Alexis Mac Allister aims clear swipe at Arne Slot reign with 'much easier' Liverpool claim
There is a specific kind of cold sweat that only an October European night at Anfield can induce. You know the feeling. You are sitting there wondering how a team with this much talent is suddenly 2-0 down to Villarreal.
For the first half-hour on Tuesday, it wasn't just bad; it was staggering. The backline looked like four strangers meeting for the first time the midfield was empty of green grass, and if it weren't for a 18-year-old kid named Rio Ngumoha running on the wing, there wouldn't have been a single celebration inside the ground.
Yet, when the full-time whistle blew on a 4-3 victory, Liverpool had somehow made it three wins from three in the Champions League league stage. So, how on earth did Andoni Iraola turn a complete train wreck into a night of pure European theatre?
According to Alexis Mac Allister who delivered an absolute masterclass alongside young Ngumoha the salvation didn't wait for a halftime roasting. It started on the pitch, mid-disaster, after barely 30 minutes.
The Midfield Reshuffle That Turned the Tide
If you were watching from the Main Stand or biting your nails at home, you could see the shape was all wrong. Ronald Araujo was wandering into central areas like a lost soul, leaving vast caverns behind at right-back, while Jeremy Jacquet and Virgil van Dijk were getting dragged into absolute nominal land trying to track Villarreal's runners.
Iraola saw it. He had to. But instead of letting his side sink into the Anfield turf until the break, the Spaniard sent emergency instructions onto the pitch to completely alter the roles of Mac Allister and Trey Nyoni.
Speaking to Amazon Prime Video after the match, Mac Allister lifted the lid on the exact tactical audible that rescued the night:
"Already 30, 35 minutes into the first-half we made some changes. Trey was a little bit deeper and I dropped to the middle to make a three plus one to give us more possession, because we were in a rush and we were not playing well."
"At the beginning the idea was maybe to play a little more on the right, open up a little more and play with Rio. We did it a couple of times very well but it wasn’t what we wanted. Thanks to the manager we changed it and we did well. I think the last 15 minutes were already better and we played better in the second-half."
That subtle drop into a deeper pivot completely re-anchored Liverpool. It gave the Reds a breathing valve, killed Villarreal’s suffocating press, and allowed Mac Allister to start dictating the tempo like the World Cup winner we know he is.
Mending a fractured group & scraping Slot's system
Slot initially enjoyed huge success at Anfield, delivering a Premier League title during his debut season. However, things quickly unravelled during his second campaign, culminating in a disappointing fifth-place finish that ultimately led to his departure.
Iraola was brought in to steady the ship, and Mac Allister sensationally admitted that the new manager has successfully repaired a fractured dressing room atmosphere while radically altering Liverpool's tactical identity:
"Last year was a really difficult year for all of us. It was clear that I was not at the level. I am the first one to say, I have no problem. Something wasn't right in the group. This manager changed it, and that's really important."
The 27-year-old midfielder went on to break down the key tactical shift away from Slot’s structure, revealing how Iraola’s high-intensity approach has unleashed the squad:
"The way we play is quite different. I don't like to compare. I feel good, that's what I want and that's what I enjoy. Now, it's more man to man. You have to communicate less because you have to follow [the opponent]."
"Last year it was more of a zonal thing. With the national team we do more of a zonal thing and it works. Now, we do a one vs. one and it works."
"In the end, it's about us taking the responsibility. That's one of the changes. But now it's much easier, you have to think less but run more, maybe. That's the way football is going."
Make no mistake: Iraola still has serious questions to answer regarding why this team keeps walking into matchdays looking completely unglued defensively. You cannot give European opposition a two-goal head start every fortnight and expect Anfield magic to bail you out.
However, hearing Mac Allister speak so openly about the newfound unity in the squad and the clarity Iraola has brought after Slot's departure proves the dressing room is fully behind the manager.
For now, though? We take the three points, marvel at Alexis Mac Allister’s rebirth,
