A Diminished Presence of His Commanding Persona - Liverpool's Captain Fights Waning Influence

The intense focus that has been trained on one global Liverpool great turned to another on Anfield's most recent frustrating night.

Mohamed Salah has faced examination for his struggles this season - and was relegated to the substitutes' bench for the consecutive Premier League game as the Black Cats visited on Wednesday.

But it was skipper Virgil van Dijk, a unmatched defensive rock as Liverpool have swept up the array of top honors, whose dip in performance became the focus during the stalemate.

The Veteran Duo and Contract Extensions

Van Dijk, 34, and Salah, 33, both inked high-value two-year deals in the summer, with barely a Liverpool eyebrow raised at the idea of handing contracts to a seasoned pair much closer to the end of their careers than the start.

Truly, it was a reason for joy - but now there is no escaping the stark fact that standards have dropped alarmingly for both.

Defensive Vulnerabilities and A Costly Refit

Liverpool have been exposed in defence ever since manager Arne Slot and the club's recruitment team embarked on a £450m summer rebuild that has still to demonstrate anything like value for money.

Concurrently, Van Dijk has started to lose the sense of being untouchable he has possessed since his £75m transfer from Southampton in January 2018.

Van Dijk has not been helped by fellow defender Ibrahima Konate's collapse in form, along with Milos Kerkez not finding his feet at left-back. But the esteemed defender has also fought his own battles, as highlighted by his rash handball that conceded a penalty in the heavy Champions League loss to PSV Eindhoven at Anfield.

An Incident That Encapsulated The Problem

It was exemplified in the 67th minute on Wednesday when Chemsdine Talbi gave Sunderland a merited lead, Van Dijk giving the ball away before backing away and averting his body on a 25-yard shot that struck him and drifted out of the reach of goalkeeper Alisson.

For a defender of such unquestionable quality, Van Dijk has an curious trait of shying away on the ball, sometimes to Liverpool's cost.

Bad luck at the conclusion, yes, but it was a situation Van Dijk invited with his atypical failure to act decisively, Sunderland's Talbi seizing the moment.

"Van Dijk loses the ball and then he just drops off. It's the mistake. He needs to go to the ball. Him not making the decision means that no one else knows what to do."

"Virgil Van Dijk last season was impeccable. Every game he was dominant, but right now he's making mistakes and second-guessing himself."

The Numbers and A Lack of Command

As with Salah, a player of Van Dijk's caliber must not be dismissed after securing two Premier Leagues, the Champions League, the FA Cup and two EFL Cups in a stellar Liverpool career.

He has, though, looked a shadow of his usual dominant persona this season, with the lowest recovery numbers per game during his Liverpool career, while defensive actions are also down on last season.

And, while leadership should not be Van Dijk's exclusive domain alone in a Liverpool team brimming with experience, it was lacking here. No-one was motivating a team that once again looked clueless to seize the initiative by the initiative.

Van Dijk's subpar showing, which ended with him being used as the last resort of acting as an last-ditch attacker, was symptomatic of a distinctly poor Liverpool performance - which made Sunday's win at West Ham seem like the outlier rather than the standard.

A Team Without Spark

Slot stayed with the side that halted a run of nine losses in 12 games at London Stadium, Salah once more observing from the sidelines.

The Egyptian was introduced at the start of the second half as the Kop turned to him for inspiration. It failed to materialize, with £125m Alexander Isak also anonymous after getting off the mark with his first league goal for Liverpool on Sunday.

Slot would have been under greater pressure had Florian Wirtz's 81st-minute shot not deflected in off Nordi Mukiele to set up what Liverpool hoped would be a thrilling finale.

A late scare came - but at the other end. Liverpool were only avoided defeat in stoppage time when Federico Chiesa's superb tracking back allowed him to turn Sunderland substitute Wilson Isidor's shot off the line after he had beaten keeper Alisson.

Praise Deserved and The Road Forward

Slot and his fading champions ultimately had to take a point knowing it could have been worse, with Alisson blessed to turn Trai Hume's shot onto the bar in the first half before Omar Alderete headed against the post after the interval.

Liverpool were lethargic, unimaginative and lacking in ideas. Even the traditional late rally after the equaliser carried little conviction. Performances like this are the reason their defense of their crown has collapsed.

But significant praise for the Reds' struggles on Wednesday must be given to Sunderland, who are being seeing the results for a summer of notable ambition in the transfer market, coupled with the excellent coaching of Regis le Bris.

The Black Cats were positive, assured and dangerous.

Sunderland are now sixth in the Premier League with 23 points. It is symptomatic of the manner in which they have grown into life in the Premier League that they will be disappointed they left Anfield without adding two more to their tally.

For Slot and Liverpool, it is a case of going back to basics.