Liverpool Article 06 Apr 2024
Liverpool v Sheffield United
Once again Liverpool do what is needed to pull a win out of the bag after nearly throwing it away. It is becoming a habit making things difficult for themselves. The first half started off with the Blades attacking from kick off, but as soon as they failed to score and lost the ball, they were completely outmatched for the rest of the half. It was almost too easy. Liverpool were able to play it around at will and immediately recover it as Sheff Utd, according to the stats shown at half-time, completed just 38 passes. That was not just because they lack quality, but because they were being forced into mistakes, like the one that ended up in the back of their own net after hitting Nunez. The problem was that Liverpool were not making the most of the easy possession they had, seemingly content to hold a lead.
At half-time there was a change in tack from Sheff Utd, which almost succeeded. In fact for a long period of time it did manage to knock Liverpool off their game and they snatched a fluke equaliser via an own goal off a very unlucky Bradley. The defending did leave a bit to be desired, but the danger should have been seen off easily, even though the exploited the space left by Gomez inverting he had the chance to deal with it but was not physical enough and allowed the player to escape with the ball. For a while the game was a struggle, Liverpool completely dominated the ball but were unable to really make headway into dangerous areas.
The substitutions changed the game. Robertson's driving runs down the flank were a particular danger and Elliott was putting dangerous balls into the box. The second pair of subs completed the process and made Liverpool even more dangerous going forward. It may have taken a worldie from Mac Allister to put the Reds back in front, but it was well deserved and the third was always coming. In fact, if anything the score flattered the Yorkshire club. The worrying thing is how little penetration the team had before the substitutions. They were not getting at the Blades like they should have, far too content with a simple stroll to a 1-0 victory, when they really should have shown a bit more drive to put the game out of sight against a team that were completely outmatched. But what matters is that they did enough when it mattered to win the game.
As for Sheffield United, they came out to have a go, but were just pegged in their own half for most of the first half and struggled just to get a touch on the ball, let alone threaten a goal. Their limitations were badly shown up, despite the clear improvements in their play that have come in recent weeks under Wilder. In the second half there was a very obvious change to tactics, with probably the only thing left to them to do was to try and kick their way out of the hole they were in. There were early deliberate rakes of the back on the ankle with studs, then the bizarre jump onto the back of Konate's knee, which was a blatant attempt to nobble the defender. It is incredible that the officials did not spot what was certainly deliberate, as the ball had gone and there was no need to jump in like that other than to attempt to injure an opponent. It just left Osula free to continue to foul with impunity, which was blatantly all he was on the pitch to do.
I can fully understand why the Blades resorted to that to try and level the field and it nearly worked. It certainly knocked Liverpool out of their stride as foul after foul were ignored by the officials. It made it very difficult to play quick pass-and-move football, as a one-two was impossible, with the player making the first pass immediately being fouled and unable to receive a return. It was reminiscent of watching a lower league team against a Premier League team in the FA Cup, with the lower league side trying to use physicality to even the field. Like a cup match, quality usually tells and it did in this match as the chasing around the Sheff Utd players were doing gradually caught up with them and gaps opened up at the back. It did take a special strike to open the scoring, but it was coming as they were undone by the Liverpool substitutions and tired legs. Earlier in the game someone would have been in Mac Allister's face, but no one could get there quick enough to stop him after the hard work they had put in.
That for me is the big takeaway from this game. This season Liverpool have become more like the Liverpool of the early 1980s, who were not always demolishing teams, but they were the masters of wearing their opponents out and then scoring late to win it. They looked fitter than everyone else because they were letting the ball doing the work and dominating possession, while the opposition chased and chased and chased until their legs were gone. Then gaps appear and a goal is scored. Usually that then leads to the opposition throwing men forward to try and rescue the game and leaving even more gaps to be exploited, as happened with Liverpool's third (and it could easily have been four or five in the end). It is not an accident that Liverpool score so many after 75 minutes, it is due to the way they are playing. The way they dominate the ball and force opponents, even Manchester City, to chase is creating spaces at the back as the games go on. It is not as exciting to watch as the early days under Klopp, but it could go on to be even more successful than the time under him, for whoever takes over. He is leaving something special here for the next man.
Quick notes on the players:
Kelleher - another good game from the Irish keeper, he was unlucky with the goal, but he pulled off some good saves when needed. However, it is clear that when the ball is at his feet he is not capable of launching a quick attack in the same way that Alisson can. That is a very potent weapon missing from the Liverpool armoury, though in most other aspects on the ball he is very good. He keeps it moving well and is comfortable receiving it, he just lacks that vision and range of passing that the Brazilian brings to the team.
Bradley - if he continues to perform like this, it is difficult to see how he can lose his place when Alexander-Arnold returns. He offers far too much attacking thrust down the flanks, the ability to invert when needed and is extremely good defensively. In this form, he deserves to be first choice right-back.
Konate - if only he could stay fit, then Liverpool would have a very solid defensive base, as he is very good for the style of football Liverpool are using. He is big, quick and strong, technically competent and able to drive foward on the ball too. In a physical battle like this game became, he is about as good as it gets without cloning van Dijk. His fitness is an issue that really needs sorting out though.
van Dijk - he has been immense this season, in my opinion the best I have seen him play in a Liverpool shirt. I was not convinced about making him captain with his form being off, but it has brought out the very best in him. He has risen to the task of being the leader of the group as well as a key player in it. He has become a truly special player, with his mentality now matching his exceptional physicality and technique.
Gomez - overall a good game but playing him does mean there is a lack of width on the left, not helped by Gravenberch mostly gravitating to the right and Diaz wanting to cut inside. If he plays there, then there needs to be more width from the forward and midfield areas. Also I do feel he was a little weak on the goal and should have seen out the danger before the ball was delivered into the box. Moving him into midfield did not work this time, as there was little to defend in that area and he lacks the competence on the ball of a natural midfielder.
Szoboszlai - while he is being overshadowed by Mac Allister's excellent current form, he is playing well. Not at the level he was at the start of the season individually, but he is performing better for the team than he was then. Having only just returned to fitness, you would also expect his form to improve as he gets back to full sharpness.
Gravenberch - started off well, even getting stuck in, but struggled to find his passing range and kept drifting over to the right when he was needed on the left. After taking a nasty stud rake on the back of his calf early in the second half, he seemed to lose his desire to get stuck in and reverted to half-hearted challenges. Needs to do more, but he is just coming back from injury, so it was a good chance to feel his way back in. Personally I would have preferred to see Elliott get the minutes though.
Mac Allister - a fantastic performance from a player who is growing into something special. He just seems to keep getting better and better, pulling something out of the bag when it is needed. Up there with van Dijk as Liverpool's player of the season.
Diaz - had Bogle on toast, but never got enough of the ball, nor drove at him enough when he did have it. Played so well but just needed to do a bit more as he had Bogle tied up in knots but failed to make enough of it.
Nunez - Captain Chaos is a very good example of the saying, if at first you don't succeed. He got his reward for closing down the goalkeeper quickly on the second try, with a goal that he has very much deserved for all the work he has done for the team.
Salah - not at his best, but it was still a surprise when he was taken off as he was still looking dangerous, and we have seen so many times how he can be having an off game and then pop up with a goal. It worked out well though as the team looked much better after the subs came on.
Robertson - brought on in place of Gravenberch in the 60th minute. Was excellent after coming on and put himself back ahead of Alexander-Arnold in the assists count. His driving runs down the left flank were exactly what the team had been missing.
Elliott - surprisingly replaced Salah in the 60th minute. Played well, putting some good deliveries into the box after cutting in from the right.
Gakpo - took Gomez's place in the 73rd minute. Looked something near his best and much more comfortable coming in from the left, his natural position. Got a good goal as well.
Jones - came on instead of Szoboszlai, also in the 73rd minute. The midfield has looked so much more composed this season when he has played. Another one that just needs to stay fit, as he could be a key player without the injury problems.
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02 Apr 2024 12:31:39
Looks like its Amorim! Attacking football, conceding min goals. Bedding young players.
Cons: stubborn in player transfer, may not work well with SD, transfer comittee and scouts or even in face of statistics.
17 Mar 2024 17:46:10
Spotted Nagelsmann and moustachio'd cronies at Frankfurt airport baggage collect 11. Politely enquired see you next season at Anfield? He gave a coy smile and said no not next season. Had nice trabs on him.
11 Mar 2024 15:23:02
Dear eds, if FSG, and potentially michael edwards dilly dally on appointing Klopp successor and if all our leading targets like Alonso, Nagelsmann, Amori, de zerbi, postecoglu, or even pep Ljinders decide to say No or move on.
What is our scrap the bottom of barrel last choice? Is it Steven Gerard?
15 Mar 2024 00:05:05
Big Sam?
Liverpool Article 23 Feb 2024
Liverpool v Luton Town
In some respects that game lived up to the classic 'game of two halves' saying. The first half saw Liverpool create plenty of opportunities but just unable to convert them. The team were by far the better team overall, but the finishing was woeful. Added to that, the crowd were just not at it either and were a bit quiet, even though the team was providing intensity and some really good play, right up until the shot at the end of it. The second half felt different. The team came out and you could feel the determination to turn it around and get the three points. Along with that, the crowd seemed to be ready to help out (and not need Klopp to call for more from them as he did towards the end of the first half) and you could feel the atmosphere building along with the pressure on Luton. Eventually it all got too much for a Luton team who gave their all but were simply outclassed.
What was most pleasing from a Liverpool perspective is the way that everyone was in it together, a team from top to bottom, with John Achteberg setting an example by being the one to step in to talk to the officials when there was an issue, taking the yellow card so that Klopp would not get a touchline ban. The fans played their part too, building the atmosphere up like a pressure cooker at the start of the second half when the team needed their backing, letting them know they were with them. At this point of the season, especially with the number of injuries Liverpool have, it is not really about the performance, just the result, but that was also an excellent performance to go with it.
Luton gave everything, but they were just not good enough. They are highly reliant on the goalscorer Ogbene's pace, but his lack of end product is an issue for them and they lack quality throughout the team. That was their biggest issue, the lack of quality, they constantly tried to play out from the back but gave the ball away repeatedly as the press overwhelmed them. What I did see from them is enough heart, desire and willingness to give them a chance of staying up despite the lack of quality in the team. I do though wonder why all the fuss surrounding Barkley, who is an extremely average player and offers little bar poor decisions on the ball most of the time. Talk of him returning to the England squad must be a joke as he is nowhere near that level.
Quick notes on the players:
Kelleher - he had a mixed game, should have done better on their goal and his kicking was a bit erratic, sometimes good, sometimes just giving it away. He did come and deal with some setpieces well.
Bradley - another excellent game for the youngster, who was once again one of the better players on the pitch. I think it is telling he was taken off early to keep him fresh for the Carabao Cup final on Sunday.
Quansah - had a good game, defended really well, though he was not put under huge pressure. Strode out of defence a couple of times very well.
van Dijk - was much more aggressive and attacked the ball well from the start. A real captain's performance, driving the team on and then popping up with the equaliser.
Gomez - again he has played really well, both on the left and then when switched over to the right after Bradley was taken off. He was up against their only real threat and he kept him mostly quiet.
Endo - another good performance from Japan's captain who seems to relish a physical battle like the one Luton tried to turn the game into. He also played some very good forward passes, showing himself to be more than just there to break up the play.
Gravenberch - it seems like the Dutchman has figured out what is needed to make it in the English game and has added the mixing elements - workrate and physicality. His pace and skill was never in doubt, but now it is also added to by being a useful help off the ball. Early in the first half his pressing was enough to force Luton into giving away a corner, though he did show signs of frustration later in the half as chance after chance went begging. He was a bit less prominent in the second half.
Mac Allister - had an excellent game and got assists on the first two goals. Him and Endo alternate as the deepest lying midfielder, or sometimes both will hold deep, and they are working together well. It has really freed up Mac Allister to play his game.
Diaz - had a good game, causing no end of problems but was let down repeatedly by his finishing until he finally got one right. That also provided a great moment seeing his dad celebrate.
Gakpo - another who had a good game showing good pace and strength and got the goal his performance deserved. He is looking back to being the player who impressed so much in the second half of last season.
Elliott - worked hard, but in the first half his decision making and passing was off, as well as joining in the general malaise with regard to weak shooting. In the second half he stepped up, his driving runs made a huge difference to the game and helped put real pressure on Luton's backline. Good finish for his goal as well.
Robertson - brought on in place of Bradley in the 67th minute. Drive forward well and won the ball back for Diaz's goal as well.
Clark - came on to replace Gravenberch in the 77th minute. Struggled to really make an impression in the game, but tried hard.
McConnell - replaced Mac Allister in the 88th minute. Never really had time to affect the game as the game was in the bag by that point.
Danns - made his debut coming on to take Diaz's place in the 88th minute. So close to marking that debut with a goal and did show some nice touches.
Liverpool Article 19 Feb 2024
Brentford v Liverpool
That game could probably be called a Phyrrhic victory as a great result was slightly overshadowed by the team suffering three injuries to get it. The injuries to Nunez, Jota and Jones have come at a difficult time and to three players in good form, just as the season enters its final stretch. Whether it does cost the team in the next few weeks or not, right now the performance was very impressive. The intensity, the willingness to battle and chase, it was only bested by the noise from the away fans, who were excellent. It was a game where Liverpool gradually tightened their grip more and more as it wore on. It was just a gradual turning of the screw, more and more control of the ball and even the enforced substitutions failed to knock the team out of its rhythm. In fact the players who came on all played well and helped the team to the win.
The big issue for me is the openness at the back, there were a lot of risks taken and the two centre-backs were often left one-on-one at the back up against two attackers. When added to van Dijk's liking for backing away and refusing to engage, opened up opportunities for Brentford to get a run at the defence and cause a lot more problems than they should have. It then allowed them to get into dangerous areas where they could look to 'win' a free kick. One thing they do very well is set-pieces around the box, it should have been part of the gameplan to keep those to a minimum, but it matters little when you get the result anyway. And that is the thing, even when this team is not playing well, it is picking up the results, when it does play well, like in this game, it overwhelms the opposition, even if there are still weaknesses in the plan.
I personally find Brentford really tedious to watch now. When they initially came up they were a breath of fresh air, they went at teams and took the game to them and it was refreshing to see. As time has gone on, they have become more pragmatic and less about winning by taking the game to the opposition and more like watching the worst of an Allardyce team. They have become focused on physicality when they do not have the ball, with the intention always to leave a little on players. That would not bother me so much if they were not so intent on throwing themselves to the ground if anyone breaths on them. If they were just physical, I would enjoy that. Instead it is just one-sided, they give it out and then whine and cry if they get anything back. It is clear that their tactics have become solely based on set-pieces and getting them in dangerous areas. Like when Diaz went down claiming a penalty after a slight touch, which for me was never a penalty, it should be called out for what it is - cheating. That is what the Bees have based their game on, cheating to get set-pieces.
It has made them go from a plucky underdog that I wanted to do well, to being a team I would be glad to see the back of. The treatment of the returning Toney has compounded that for me. He has been lauded like a conquering hero coming back from an unjust lay off, rather than someone who let his team and teammates down by knowingly breaching the rules. He should be looking to make amends for his misdeeds, but he is clearly just looking to get a big money move away from the Bees. Hopefully the sale will give them the funds to put together a team that can do more than merely look to get set-pieces. When they did look to actually attack, they were managing to achieve overloads in wide areas and drag the centre-backs out of position to deal with it. With a bit more of that, they could have made the game much more difficult. They did play into Liverpool's hands with the back three set-up. It meant they either needed to keep the wing-backs back or take a risk one-on-one with Liverpool's front three. They ended up getting caught between both and caught out with the wing-backs trying to get forward.
Quick notes on the players:
Kelleher - a fairly easy ride for him, surprisingly, as they failed to really put him under pressure. It seems an odd thing to do, to not heavily press a back up keeper when he was on the ball, but Brentford did that. He was a little unlucky on their goal, having made a decent save initially.
Bradley - once again Bradley showed class and composure to match his ability. He is not playing like a youngster who has just broken into the team, he is playing like a seasoned, regular first-teamer.
Konate - the kind of game the big Frenchman loves, he likes the rough-and-tumble of a physical battle and it showed. He had a very good game and gave Toney little change.
van Dijk - a mixed game, he probably should have scored, he was caught by a simple ball in behind and was not aggressive enough dealing with their forwards. Instead he was back to dropping off and waiting for them to make a mistake. While that usually works, it is dangerous against a team that are looking to just get around the box and go down to get set-pieces. He really should have been looking to engage them higher up the pitch and kept them at arm's length.
Robertson - it is impressive how quickly he has slotted back in. He played well, particularly in the second half when he had more freedom to attack. I do wonder if it might well have worked in the club's favour having him come back fresh at this point of the season.
Endo - another good, solid game from Endo. He does lack the range of passing that Mac Allister has in that position, but he brings much more defensive solidity and gets stuck in. That physicality was very important against Brentford.
Jones - as the game went on and Liverpool took control, Jones was running the game. Unfortunately he had to go off injured.
Mac Allister - was playing a bit within Jones' shadow early on, often finding himself in a similar area of the pitch and with neither having the physicality to do anything different, it felt like it was one too many of the same type of midfielder. With Jones playing so well, he was struggling a bit to impose himself on the game. After Jones went off, he stepped up and became the player controlling the play instead. Having Gravenberch alongside him made him the senior player and the two had much clearer delineation of responsibilities, it seemed a much more natural partnership and Mac Allister played very well, even adding a goal.
Diaz - had a really good game, causing their defence and midfield so many problems as he moved around all over the place.
Nunez - scored a good goal and was always a handful to the defence. Losing him for any length of time could be a real problem for Liverpool as he is just starting to raise his game, so Klopp will have his fingers crossed that taking him off at half-time will have saved him from long-term damage.
Jota - was playing really well, setting up Nunez for his goal and generally harrying the Brentford players into mistakes. Such a shame that an accident like that caused an injury that forced him to come off and looks to be a pretty bad injury. It was among the best performances he had put in while playing for Liverpool.
Gravenberch - replaced the injured Jones in the 34th minute. Normally the worry with Gravenberch is his tendency to bottle the physical aspects of the game, that did make me nervous when he came on, but he showed a totally different side to himself in this match. He was being much more physical and getting stuck in, which contributed to a very good performance. It allowed him to not just contribute with a few nice runs, but to also break up play and win the ball back.
Salah - came on in the 44th minute to take the place of Jota who picked up a knee injury. His return could not have come at a better time and he was back like he had never been away. A nice ball for Mac Allister to score and later scored himself after some good play.
Gakpo - was brought on at half-time in the place of Nunez, who was also injured. A much better performance from Gakpo. Not just scoring, but also being much more prominent in the play, working hard and getting involved.
Elliott - took the place of Mac Allister in the 83rd minute. Always provides a burst of energy when he arrives and it lifted the team just as tiredness could have begun to set it.
Gomez - was also brought on in the 83rd minute, in order to replace Bradley. Did not really have a lot to do.
16 Feb 2024 10:45:02
Klopp to Madrid 25/ 26. Taa and vvd.
They've basically signed every player he wanted for us. By that I'm talk about thcoumeni. Which is not very deep but hear me out.
Bellingham. Vinicus. Rodrigo. Valverde. Camavinga.
Mbappe? Just imagine him with them
Also next season is TAA first ever season without Klopp. It's like the gift he's leaving us. It still hasn't sunk in for me. But all things come to an end and at least it's "good" tears, this is on the level though. I think personally it had gone to far and he8 had gotten legendary status. I don't think day could have ever sacked.