The good, the bad and the elbows
What a strange, yet thrilling game. The first 40 minutes were as poor as anything we’ve served up this season and given how poor we’ve been, that says something in itself.
We were awful though and really, what on earth was that system supposed to be? I spent the first half hour just trying to figure out what the formation was supposed to be and what position Trent was meant to be playing. After a while I realised Trent was playing midfield when in possession and (allegedly) RB when we weren’t. Klopp confirmed after he was meant to be part of a double pivot in midfield when in possession, although he was all over the pitch so you could have been forgiven for thinking he was playing in any of the midfield positions, although Jones was so anonymous, he probably had to try and so the work of two midfielders.
Add to that the fact Konate was then having to cover RB and it meant we had an absolute chasm of space between our two CB’s, highlighted by Arsenal’s first goal where they basically just ran in a straight line through the centre of the pitch, although to say Virgil didn’t cover himself in glory in the build up to that goal would be an understatement. It never helped shore up our right flank at all either as was demonstrated by the second goal they scored, simple ball over the top, no attempt to stop the cross and then Virgil again, ball watching and leaving Jesus free as a bird to nod home.
Can anyone seriously tell me that this setup isn’t ludicrously overcomplicated? Your RB is in midfield in possession and at RB when not? And what was the formation meant to be when in possession? 3-4-3? I still can’t really figure it out.
This really needs to stop. We need to decide if Trent is a midfielder, which I have no problem with as I feel he has the skill set to play either as a 6 as part of a double pivot or as an 8 but then we need a proper RB on the pitch. Alternatively he’s a RB but then play the role properly. This hybrid between the two has caused chaos down our right flank all season and it’s hindered Trent as well, as we’ve seen his assists completely dry up this season. Second half our formation seemed more settled and I don’t think it’s coincidence that when Trent did hurt them and got his assist, it was coming in from the right along the byline. I’ve been calling for this all season, that’s where Trent has been damaging teams in recent years but because he’s always in midfield now, we’re either pushing Salah out wide and therefore further away from goal, or it’s Hendo who couldn’t cross the road, sending in one of his aimless balls that are easy to defend against, or it’s Harvey who’s cutting back onto his stronger left foot. Like I say, it’s not worked and it’s time a decision was taken on Trent’s position, one way or the other.
Anyway, that’s the bad out the way, which brings us to the first of two elbows. Xhaka swung an elbow at Trent for no reason really, Trent was furious, the crowd lifted and it took the players with them. 90 seconds later, we’d scored and it became a different game in the lead up to halftime. Totally unnecessary from a player as experienced as Xhaka but he’s always had that in him and why I wouldn’t have him in any top team.
That brings us to elbow number two – the linesman on Robbo. Never in all my years of watching football have I seen an official strike out at a player. It was madness on the part of the official as he’ll likely find himself in deep trouble. From our point of view however, it just further raised the anger level in our team and in the second half we FINALLY saw what we’ve all been screaming for all season – heart, fight and desire. Three things that have been synonymous with Klopp’s Liverpool throughout his tenure but has been painfully lacking this season and what a difference it made.
Suddenly we looked like Liverpool again and we battered Arsenal in that second half. Even with the missed penalty, we had more than enough chances to win the game, with Ramsdale pulling off a couple of spectacular saves.
In regards to the penalty, that’s two in a row where Salah hasn’t just missed but has missed the target altogether. That really isn’t acceptable at this level and in all likelihood, had he scored those two penalties, we’d probably have gone on to win against Bournemouth and would almost certainly have won yesterday. That would leave us only 6 points off top four and it would very much still be on. At 12 points off however, it’s pretty much game over in terms of playing Champions League next season. These are the margins at the highest level and when you also have Fabinho in the team who has an almost perfect penalty record as a professional, it may be time to discuss Salah’s role as penalty taker in the team, at least for the rest of this season when he’s not in the running for the golden boot.
Anyway, what was really refreshing was to actually enjoy a Liverpool game once more. Jerry made the point on the thread about enjoying it more than the United game and I get that. United was just one of those freak games where everything goes your way and was almost too easy, whereas yesterday we really had to dig deep and fight for that result and we really should’ve gone on to win, which was unthinkable first half when they were 2-0 up and absolutely cruising.
Can we build on yesterday and have a strong finish to the season? I don’t know is the answer. It’s been a season littered with false dawns so I’m scared to get my hopes up but at least it shows the team are still capable of this kind of display, which I really had started to believe they no longer were.
In the grand scheme of things it changes nothing. The damage is already done in terms of this season and we still need a proper rebuild in the summer but at least we showed some pride and fighting spirit again. Now let’s finish the season strong, try and finish in as respectable a position as possible and put this horrible season behind us, ready to go again next year. Walk on!
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