Last night, The Times' Merseyside correspondent was on Off The Ball to speak to us about Liverpool's disappointing start to the new season.
Defeats to Aston Villa and West Ham have led to some concerns and although Barrett believes Brendan Rodgers will find the right formula, he did make an interesting point about Liverpool's identity.
Much of their success last season was built an intense form of collective pressing exemplified by the manic movement and energy of Luis Suarez.
Of course things were going to change with the Uruguayan's departure and the arrival of Mario Balotelli. The increased number of matches thanks to Champions League qualification and the reduced time to work on tactics and cohesion on the training field are also an issue - it may become benefit of a Champions League exile for an out of sorts Louis Van Gaal and Manchester United.
While, the Premier League season is only five matchdays old and injuries and rotation mean Liverpool have not always played their strongest squad, what differences can we note from last season statistically?
Pressing
Liverpool are currently averaging about 18 tackles per game this season which is well down on the 22 per game that they were hitting.
Indeed last season the Reds' pressing was such a factor in their defensive identity that they topped the Premier League's tackles per game category, whereas this season they are among the bottom six clubs so far.
Of course, this could fluctuate as the season progresses but it is certainly an interesting development.
In terms of leading from the front, Suarez attempted about 1 tackle per match on average during 2013/14, while Balotelli is currently averaging not far above 0.5, although this could be subject to change as he beds into his new club.
But it is still interesting to see how pressing has appeared to become less of a factor.
To see more of Liverpool's team and individual stats on Squawka, click here
Philippe Coutinho and Martin Skrtel ©INPHO/James Crombie
Defensive weakness
Despite strengthening the defence by bringing in Dejan Lovren from Southampton, a weakness clearly still remains.
Last season, Liverpool made the most defensive errors of any team in the Premier League with 42, although 13 of those actually led to the concession of a goal.
This term they have made a total of four errors (two leading to a goal) which is currently below the likes of Everton and Manchester United.
But the average is not far below last season, although Lovren has not made a defensive mistake according to Squawka. The stats show that Mamadou Sakho, Alberto Moreno, Martin Skrtel and Simon Mignolet have made one error that either led to a goal or an attempt on goal. However, there have been clearly been other mistakes that are not included in that statistical parameter.
Use of the ball
Possession stats remain exactly the same from last season with Liverpool commanding 54 per cent of the ball across August 2013 to present.
Chances per game are down slightly from 12.8 to 10.4 but again fluctuations are bound to occur based on the small sample size Liverpool have had to face this season.
The source of chances created has seen a slight change. Last season, just over 10.5 per cent of opportunities created originated from an advanced left wing position (the space along and between the box and touchline). That has now jumped to 17 per cent. And far more chances are originating from the centre circle zone, seeing roughly a 10 per cent rise.
Second only to Suarez last season, Steven Gerrard is now Liverpool's top chance creator with 10 this season. Last term, only 6 per cent of his chances were created in that deep central area with that figure rising to somewhere close to 20 per cent in the early embers of 2014/15.
Of course the stats will change at the season progresses, but based on what Barrett was saying about the identity on Off The Ball, it is certainly worth following the changes on Squawka.
All stats are courtesy of statistics website Squawka. Learn more about Squawka and the free app by clicking here.
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