Liverpool's recent Premier League form has been a cause for significant concern, highlighted by a disheartening 3-2 defeat to Brentford at the Gtech Community Stadium. This loss marked the champions' fourth consecutive league defeat, a run of domestic form not seen since February 2021. Head coach Arne Slot openly admitted that this result was among the most disappointing of his tenure, stating, "I think it's up there in my time here in terms of losing a game of football."

The defeat saw Liverpool drop to sixth in the Premier League table, having already lost as many games this season as they did throughout the entirety of the previous one. Slot emphasized the gravity of the situation, noting that losing four times in a row is concerning regardless of the opponent. He described the performance against Brentford as "the worst from all the four losses we've had," citing a failure to execute basic principles, particularly in the first half and parts of the second. Brentford consistently won more duels and second balls, demonstrating their well-drilled approach.

The match itself saw Brentford establish an early lead with Dango Ouattara scoring in the 5th minute, followed by Kevin Schade doubling the advantage just before half-time. Milos Kerkez managed to pull one back for Liverpool in first-half stoppage time, briefly narrowing the deficit. However, a controversial moment in the second half saw Igor Thiago convert a penalty after VAR adjudged Virgil van Dijk to have fouled Ouattara inside the box, restoring Brentford's two-goal cushion on the hour mark. Mohamed Salah ended his six-game goal drought with a brilliant shot in the 89th minute, but despite 11 minutes of added time, Liverpool could not find an equalizer, allowing Keith Andrews' side to secure maximum points.

Adding to Slot's frustrations were two key refereeing decisions. Just prior to Brentford's second goal, Cody Gakpo had a strong penalty claim turned down following a challenge from Nathan Collins. Slot argued that if both the conceded penalty and Gakpo's incident were shown to any referee, they might award both or neither, but he would "definitely" give the one to Gakpo. He mused that the VAR intervention on the Van Dijk penalty, which converted what the referee initially perceived as a free kick into a spot-kick, felt like "bad luck" for his team.

This loss underscores Liverpool's recent defensive frailties and proves that their midweek demolition of Frankfurt was an anomaly amidst a poor run of form, with this being their fifth loss in six matches. The team's inability to halt their slide means they could end the weekend seven points adrift of league leaders Arsenal, with last season's successes now feeling distant.