Liverpool’s ability to adapt in difficult situations will become one of their greatest strengths

Liverpool make the whole thing look a little too easy, don’t they?

Not only do they sit top of the Premier League and the Champions League league stage table, but they are now in the semi-finals of the Carabao Cup for a record 20th time after beating Southampton at St Mary’s.

Even without Arne Slot, who was absent from the sidelines due to his one-match suspension for picking up three yellow cards this season, his team still looked good and spent the first hour of the game doing so as often as not switching between systems that the hosts had no idea how to handle them.

Slot, so adaptable in his style, is building a team that plays with conviction regardless of the personnel deployed. The way his team moved the ball through the middle, it was a joy to see what was achieved by a patched up team.

Sometimes you see Liverpool’s lineup change drastically due to injuries and the lack of rested players. But for the second game in a row, a midfielder stepped in as centre-back and controlled the position as if it were his own.

This was Wataru Endo’s time to shine in an unfamiliar position – at least in his Liverpool career – and Ryan Gravenberch did the same in Saturday’s 2-2 draw with Fulham.

Wataru Endo in action against Southampton (Michael Steele/Getty Images)

Playing in the middle of defense is for strong, battle-hardened players who are willing to throw their bodies on the line and head the ball away without batting an eye. Size also plays a role.

Endo is much smaller (178cm/5ft 10in) than any other player expected to take on such a role for Liverpool this season, but showed no signs of trouble even when he was tackled in the closing stages by giant Southampton striker Paul Onuachu was overshadowed.

“To play a game as good as this in another position shows what a good player he is, but also what his mentality is,” Slot said.

Endo was the most fouled player on the field, but also won the most tackles (four) and tackles (10) and missed only six of his 85 passes. It was quite unfortunate that he was only penalized once when the ball bounced into his face and he lay blinded on the ground, but there was space in front of him for Cameron Archer to score. That changed the game and gave Southampton a spark that never seemed likely after Liverpool had taken a 2-0 lead at half-time thanks to goals from Darwin Nunez and Harvey Elliott.

Undoubtedly, the changes in the second half also had an impact on the last half hour. Tyler Morton, a central midfielder by trade, spent most of the second half at right-back and Jayden Danns, 18, and James McConnell, 20, were tasked with delivering the win.

But once again Liverpool have shown a different way to get over the finish line and that is a credit to the way Slot prepare them. After 60 minutes of dominance, the performance was tough and determined for the rest of the game. There aren’t many teams in the country who can adapt under slot as well as Liverpool, and with every week the Dutchman proves what a clever signing he is.

Darwin Nunez gestures as he celebrates Liverpool taking the lead at St Mary’s (Dan Mullan/Getty Images)

Despite the difficult injury list, Liverpool still look very unnerved and only four teams in the Premier League have taken points from them in 15 games. In all competitions, slot won 20 out of 24 games and no one expected it to go so smoothly.

It would only be natural if injuries to key players meant Liverpool were short-handed during this period – but when they were down to ten men against Fulham at the weekend, Gravenberch, their standout player this season, dropped back into central defence and wandered around as if he had played 100 games there.

Endo didn’t have much time to prepare for this test, but he also performed tremendously in Liverpool’s emergency situations. Admittedly, he will never have the same skills as Gravenberch or some of the other midfielders who get the nod ahead of him in the Premier League. Virgil van Dijk doesn’t have to worry about his place either, but being promoted to this position without many minutes or much experience was impressive.

With Ibrahima Konate injured, Liverpool are overloaded in defense and will need some unexpected changes and restructuring to get the team through.

However, this series of results is about more than just swapping positions of some players. Slot said when he first joined the club from Feyenoord this summer that he wanted his team to be so varied and unpredictable that it would be difficult for opponents to work out their system.

This didn’t necessarily mean putting square pegs like Endo in a round hole. His hybrid role of playing in defense when in possession and then pushing into midfield when in possession was purely a necessity.

It was the total number of changes – and their frequency – that really made the difference. From 17-year-old Trey Nyoni switching from side to side, to Elliott dropping deeper to catch the ball, and Alexis Mac Allister subtly finding space to dictate, Liverpool had it a lot for Southampton in a scenario that so many other seasons have already struggled with.

(Top photo: Liverpool FC/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)