Following victories over West Ham and Manchester City in the past week, it was somewhat appropriate that Liverpool's voyage up the Premier League table was brought to an unexpected halt by the division's lowest-ranked side on Saturday, Nottingham Forest.
It was another afternoon to forget for Jurgen Klopp and his side as a second half strike from former Liverpool man Taiwo Awoniyi ensured the German added his name to the list of his Liverpool predecessors - Graeme Souness, Roy Evans and Gerard Houllier - who had all been unable to secure victory at the City Ground in the Premier League era.
While the history books won't sympathise with Klopp who was without Luis Diaz, Diogo Jota, Darwin Nunez, Thiago Alcantara and Ibrahima Konate. The absence of the Reds' cunning Spaniard - who succumbed to an ear infection in the early hours of Saturday morning - was always going to reduce Liverpool's chances of experiencing any joy against the compact low-block on display from Steve Cooper's side.
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Curtis Jones was handed the unexpected task of replacing Thiago as he started alongside Fabinho in a double-pivot and even though it was the 21-year-old's first start since the Premier League victory over Southampton in May. On the whole, it was in fact the form of his Brazilian counterpart which triggered immediate cause for concern in midfield.
Fabinho's performance in the Midlands followed the familiar - yet alarming - trend since he was rushed back from a hamstring injury in the closing weeks of Liverpool's quadruple chase last season, in the hope he would be fit for the Champions League final against Real Madrid at the Stade de France. Fit he was, but, understandably because of his extreme pursuit for fitness, the 29-year-old was a shadow of his expected best as Los Blancos claimed their 14th European Cup victory.
While Fabinho is not alone in experiencing early-season troubles, it is clear his struggles have lingered over the summer months and seeped into the 2022/23 campaign. Simply put, the Brazilian has been an unrecognisable performer for Liverpool this season.
Having joined in the immediate days after Liverpool lost the 2018 Champions League final to Real Madrid, the former AS Monaco midfielder was hailed as a transformative figure for Klopp's all-conquering side as he helped inspire successful quests for domestic and continental kingship. But at the City Ground on Saturday, Fabinho was pulled from pillar to post by Ryan Yates and Cheikhou Kouyate and failed to win any of his attempted tackles.
Perhaps most concerning for his manager will be the way in which he continues to lumber around the field, looking breathless as if he has been running on empty for the past four-and-a-half months. The remarkable intelligence and understanding of the game which so often had the Brazilian positioned two moves ahead of his opponents seem to have been lost somewhere amongst Liverpool's misery this campaign.
Seven out of the 18 players who featured at the City Ground recorded more ball recoveries than Fabinho (6), who was once hailed as the Reds' 'lighthouse' by assistant manager Pep Lijnders due to his sixth sense at snuffing out opposition attacks. Most concerningly, in his last 195 minutes in a Liverpool shirt he has failed to win a tackle, according to FotMob.
While stats will only tell half the story of Liverpool's continuous struggles in the Premier League this season, with injuries of various degrees also playing a significant part, Klopp's switch to a 4-4-2 in recent weeks does not bode well for the Brazilian; with himself, Jordan Henderson and Thiago now effectively fighting for just two positions due to German's tactical shift in order to name attackers.
Since his ropey performance in the 3-3- draw with Brighton at the start of the month, Fabinho has been dropped for the clashes with both Arsenal and West Ham. While even Henderson has struggled this season too, it's telling that Klopp went to the extreme measures of dropping his only natural defensive midfielder for both the defeats at the Emirates and Old Trafford.
Having penned a new long-term contract at Anfield only last summer, his form will be the grounds for plenty of headaches on Merseyside because of just how quickly one of the club's most reliable and exceptional players seems to have slipped down the pecking order. It was only three-and-a-half years ago the Brazilian excellently governed Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Philippe Coutinho in the 4-0 trouncing of Barcelona - even after receiving an unjust yellow card after just eleven minutes - as he cemented himself as the unsung hero of Anfield's most extraordinary triumph.
The Premier League title-winning season that followed was without a doubt the 29-year-old's finest campaign and led to the midfielder being dubbed as the best Europe had to offer in his position. But since that astonishing season, which saw Liverpool amass 99 points, his numbers have declined.
In the league this season Fabinho has averaged just 4.64 successful pressures per 90 minutes, down from his previous impressive tally of 6.02 in 2019/2020. His number of combined tackles and interceptions per 90 have also drastically fallen from 4.42 to 3.10.
After starting 41 of Liverpool's 63 games across four competitions last term, there are genuine and valid justifications for Fabinho's worrying performances. However, with the Brazilian - injury permitting- nailed-on to be included in the Selecao's World Cup squad for next month's finals in Qatar; it begs the question as to how does Klopp handle one of the most fatigue-plagued members of his squad?
At the moment, playing the Brazilian through his rocky condition seems to be the solution Liverpool have opted for. But one thing that is for sure is if the Reds want to achieve anything plausible this term the form of their one-time defensive stalwart will be central.
Klopp needs his 'lighthouse' back preventing danger once again, and fast.
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