This year's Wembley wasn't Liverpool's! In March, Liverpool lost 2-1 to Newcastle in the League Cup final, missing out on the title. Five months later, Liverpool suffered another defeat in the mecca of English football: in the Community Shield final, they lost 5-4 on aggregate to last season's FA Cup champions, Crystal Palace, missing out on the title once again. It's worth noting that both of Liverpool's final defeats were historic, as Newcastle won their first top-flight title in 70 years and their first League Cup, while Crystal Palace won their first Community Shield title. It's no exaggeration to say that this dark chapter in Liverpool's history will be a particularly etched chapter in their history.

Watching Crystal Palace win their first Community Shield, two of Liverpool's star players took the blame: Van Dijk and Salah, seemingly sleepwalking. Let's start with Van Dijk. Both of Liverpool's goals conceded were partially due to him. The first was a penalty he conceded, allowing Mateta to convert, allowing Crystal Palace to equalize after trailing 0-1. While Gakpo was at fault for the second goal, Van Dijk was easily beaten by Sarr in the backfield, leading to a serious lapse in concentration. Van Dijk's ruthless error also magnified Liverpool's center-back problems. Currently, Liverpool only has three available center-backs: Van Dijk, Konate, and Gomez. Gomez is also recovering from injury. If Liverpool doesn't add a center-back, this position is likely to become a minefield.

Currently, Liverpool's preferred center-back is Crystal Palace captain Gueye, who led his team to victory over Liverpool tonight and secured the title. However, whether he will join Liverpool remains uncertain. Gueye's contract with Crystal Palace expires next summer, and he has reportedly rejected a new offer, making him likely to leave this summer. However, Crystal Palace values him at £50 million, a significant difference from Liverpool's target of £35 million. Whether this deal goes through will be crucial for Liverpool's success for the coming season.

Van Dijk's slump has exacerbated the center-back situation. Furthermore, Salah's poor performance tonight was one of the main reasons Liverpool failed to secure the Community Shield. Throughout the match, Salah had only one shot on goal and no key passes, a stark contrast to his performance of 34 goals and 23 assists last season. He delivered a subpar performance in the 90 minutes of regular-season action, and in the penalty shootout, Salah, the first player to appear, missed the penalty, causing significant psychological pressure on his teammates and ultimately leading to Liverpool's defeat. Penalties seem to be a constant source of anxiety for Salah, and including the one against Athletic Bilbao, he has conceded two penalties recently. As we all know, Salah's performance has been sluggish since the second half of last season. If he fails to improve this season, Liverpool's future is in jeopardy.

However, Liverpool's news tonight wasn't all bad. At least there were some gains in terms of new signings. Wirtz provided the assist for Ekitik's first official goal for Liverpool, while Frimpong also scored his first goal. All three new signings have demonstrated strong offensive abilities. However, considering the €300 million investment this summer (and potentially more to come), and considering Liverpool isn't a particularly financially stable club, any unsatisfactory results could put the entire team at risk.