Liverpool's Flaws Exposed Again at St James' Park

Liverpool’s old flaws, the ones they thought they had spent their way out of, were laid bare again at St James’ Park.

Pat Nevin summed it up on BBC Radio 5 Live: “You can see the weaknesses that Liverpool had last season have not gone away.” On this evidence, they’ve hardened rather than healed.

A soft centre, punished early

Andoni Iraola rolled the dice in midfield. He stationed Florian Wirtz ahead of a flimsy pivot of Ryan Gravenberch and Dominik Szoboszlai, and Newcastle walked straight through the gap.

This was not peak Newcastle. They have lost their most effective forward and two best midfielders over the summer. Yet they still sliced Liverpool open with embarrassing ease.

The warning came inside five minutes. Both Gravenberch and Szoboszlai were in Newcastle’s box when the hosts sprang forward. One direct break, one glaringly unprotected back four, and Anthony Elanga was racing away to score. It was a goal Liverpool conceded repeatedly last season. They look ready to do the same again.

The pattern did not change. Whenever Newcastle broke with any sort of purpose, Liverpool’s midfield vanished from view. “Fine footballers” barely covers it; Gravenberch and Szoboszlai are talented, but their instincts point towards goal, not towards their own defenders. As a shield, they are almost decorative.

Cody Gakpo briefly dragged Liverpool level, but even that moment of relief disintegrated almost instantly. Just 176 seconds after the equaliser, Joe Willock restored Newcastle’s lead, helped by more slack positioning and loose concentration from the visitors. Liverpool’s shape crumpled at the first sign of pressure.

Iraola reacts, but questions grow

Falling behind for a second time forced Iraola into an early rethink. He hooked Wirtz and Ngumoha, sending on Alexis Mac Allister and new signing Victor Munoz. The change brought energy and a little control, but it also underlined the scale of the problem.

Munoz, direct and fearless, drove at Newcastle and earned the penalty that allowed Szoboszlai to snatch a draw. His cameo was one of the few bright spots.

The same could not be said for Ngumoha. Thrown in on the right to replace Mohamed Salah, even though his natural side is the left, he was handed a near-impossible assignment. The context buys him some sympathy.

Wirtz gets none. Liverpool supporters have been remarkably patient with the £100 million Germany international. Jamie Carragher, writing in the Daily Telegraph before the opening weekend, challenged him to show he was more than just “neat and tidy”. Against Newcastle, he fell well short of that bar.

Yes, he managed one of Liverpool’s rare first-half shots on target. That was about it. The larger issue remains unsolved: where does he actually fit?

On the left wing, he has often looked lost, drifting rather than dictating. In the central role that is supposed to be his natural habitat, he again failed to seize a game that was begging for a big performance from a marquee signing. The fanfare that greeted his arrival last summer now feels like a distant echo.

Isak misfires, Liverpool worry

Alexander Isak’s return to Newcastle was no redemption story either. He was poor. Service to the Swede was limited, but when a chance did fall his way in the second half, he smashed it high into the stands. The home fans roared with laughter. Liverpool’s travelling support did not.

Isak’s struggles, paired with Wirtz’s ongoing anonymity, cut much deeper than one bad night. This is a Liverpool squad with issues in every department. Milos Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong endured miserable evenings on Tyneside, and the defensive structure behind them looked just as fragile.

That is why the transfer window looms so large. The club has already dropped nine-figure sums on Wirtz and Isak, players signed to turn Liverpool into Champions League contenders again. Twelve months on, both are labouring against mid-table Premier League opposition.

A long season, a short fuse

The season is only just underway. Iraola’s tenure has barely started. He has inherited a squad drained by a trophyless campaign that limped to fifth place in 2025-26. No manager fixes that overnight.

Szoboszlai was right to stress the positives: twice behind, Liverpool still found a way to leave with a point. There was resilience, at least on the scoreboard.

But peel back the result, and the concerns are hard to ignore. The midfield remains too open. The big-money signings look uncertain. The balance of the side is off.

Wirtz and Isak were brought in to solve problems, to elevate Liverpool beyond nights like this. Right now, they are part of the reason those problems refuse to go away.