‘We have to wake up’, Szoboszlai warns as Liverpool drop more points

Dominik Szoboszlai has warned Liverpool FC must “wake up” after the club dropped more points in the Premier League following a late equaliser in their 1-1 draw against Tottenham Hotspur.

Szoboszlai gave Liverpool the lead in the 18th minute before Richarlison scored a late equaliser for Tottenham.

The result denied Liverpool the chance to move into fourth place, and the players were booed by fans at full-time.

“I feel flat,” Szoboszlai said on Sky Sports.

“We have to wake up because if we carry on like this, we should be happy with the Conference League. I don’t know why this is happening, I honestly don’t know.

“In the last minute, again, I don’t know how many times this season already.”

ALSO READ: Richarlison’s late goal earns Spurs draw at Liverpool

Liverpool have now conceded eight Premier League goals in the 90th minute or later this season.

It is their highest in a single campaign, surpassing the seven conceded in the 2010-11 season.

Five of those late goals came in defeats against Crystal Palace, Chelsea FC, AFC Bournemouth, Manchester City and Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Three others resulted in draws against Leeds United, Fulham FC and Tottenham.

Former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher said the result could affect the club’s push for a place in next season’s Champions League.

“This is an absolute disaster in terms of Champions League qualification,” Carragher said on Sky Sports.

“With Aston Villa and Man Utd playing each other, someone was going to drop points.

“It was coming, I was saying it all second half. They have been sleepwalking. Liverpool were all over the place.”

Liverpool manager Arne Slot admitted the team had conceded too many late goals.

“We have conceded far too many goals to pick up the amount of points that this club and I am used to,” Slot said.

Liverpool have conceded 15 league goals from the 75th minute onwards this season, more than any other team in the league.

Slot said the late goals had come in different situations.

“Again in the last minute, again after an opportunity to score ourselves and again we leave the pitch with a disappointing result,” he said.

“The way we concede is not always the same in the last minute. You cannot compare the deflected shot against Wolves with the shot today. All of the moments they had came from long balls and second balls and we were not able to clear the ball fast enough.

“As this season is going, it is not a complete surprise we are conceding in the last moments.”

Slot added on BBC Radio 5 Live: “Every time it happens in the last minute it is an enormous frustration.

“How many times does it need to happen? And it happened again today. This time it didn’t come as a complete surprise – the last 15-20 minutes of the game were the most equal part of the game.”

Both Slot and Szoboszlai said they understood the reaction of the fans after the match.

However, the midfielder urged supporters to continue backing the team as they prepare for their Champions League last-16 second-leg tie against Galatasaray.

“I’m 100% sure that if they show up on Wednesday that they will be supportive again from the start, but if the team doesn’t perform to the standards that they are used to, I think it is completely normal that they are frustrated,” Slot added.

One positive for Liverpool was the performance of 17-year-old winger Rio Ngumoha, who made his first Premier League start.

Ngumoha completed seven dribbles during the match, becoming the first player to do so in a Premier League game since Matheus Cunha for Wolves against Aston Villa in May 2023.

“I think I have said two months ago, he progressed so well as a 16-year-old and now 17 he is progressing well,” Slot said.

“A performance like today will only help him to get more minutes for this club.

“I have 12 or 13 players that are able to bring good performances. Rio is doing that well it makes sense to play him.”