Liverpool started their scoring at a similar point in the match as the weekend, but unlike their league bout with Huddersfield, they continued forward. When all was said and done, Liverpool slotted four past Red Star Belgrade (this even with chances left on the table) and resulting took first place in their group as a result of a draw in the PSG/Napoli match.
What Happened:
Liverpool started on the front foot and continued that from there. Their first chance came from the boot of Mo Salah, whose early chance in the 11th was smothered by Canadian national keeper Milan Borjan. Belgrade had a solid chance in the 15th off a corner when center back Srdjan Babic came through the box free, but the ball met his boot and skied over the bar. The deadlock would last under ten more minutes, though, and Bobby Firmino got the first goal for the boys in red. Xherdan Shaqiri's ball down the left flank was beautiful to Andy Robertson, and Robertson cut it back into the box for his Brazilian striker to take his time and drill it home. The rest of the first half continued to see Liverpool in comfortable control. In the final minute of the half, though, Gini Wijnaldum picked out Shaqiri well in good position who sent a one-touch pass right to Salah. His right foot was the right one and Salah blasted it past Borjan, doubling the lead right before the half.
The second half was even more dominant than the first. Belgrade barely saw the ball in their attacking half throughout, but the Liverpool scoring continued. Sadio Mane earned his side a penalty after captain Filip Stojkovic held his arm out on the Senegalese man. It was made a meal out of by the winger, but the right call was made in my view. It was not the force, it was the obstruction that was key. Salah took the spot kick and sent it fairly down the middle. Borjan dived away, and the lead was 3-0 quickly. Liverpool won another penalty in the 76th with a handball by winger Ben, but Mane's take was saved well off the bar by Borjan, and the follow was smothered.
Four minutes later, Mane would get his goal. Daniel Sturridge slipped Mane through rather unselfishly and Mane would join his fab three mates in getting a goal on this European evening. It was a 4-0 scoreline and Sturridge's assist joined Robertson and Shaqiri in lovely passes through to find a hole well in the Serbian team's back line. Liverpool had another chance just a minute later as Sturridge again sent a man through, this time Adam Lallana who'd come on as a sub, but Borjan made the save quite well. The last ten minutes plus stoppage time were mere formalities: Liverpool remained the aggressor even up four goals and put away a crucial three points in their quest to continue on in the Champions League.
How Did This Happen:
Liverpool dominated every aspect of this match. The 4-2-3-1 featured Mo Salah as a striker, Bobby Firmino as the attacking-midfielder, Xherdan Shaqiri on the right wing, and Fabinho and Gini Wijnaldum as a double pivot. Firmino dropped deeper in the pitch when necessary to win the ball back, but tonight the man who was synonymous with 'winning the ball' was Fabinho. Fabinho shone with nine (!) tackles won, 80 passes with 90% accuracy (a team high for starters), 96 touches, six aerial duels won, and 18 duels won total (out of 24). His passing range was on full display with well-weighted passes spread all around the field for his teammates, but it was clear early on that no one would be getting past Fabinho if he had something to say about it. He was simply sublime and has been well worth the wait for Jurgen Klopp. His 8.69 rating on WhoScored is a team-high for great reason, he is my own man of the match.
You can make the case for several players of the match on this brilliant evening. Xherdan Shaqiri continues to be a joy to watch as his strength and pace, combined with so many lovely passes, have made him an Anfield hero. This was his top match of the season and with one assist and another key pass on the first goal, it's easy to see why. Andy Robertson was also in top, top form at left back where he sprinted up and down the left wing seemingly unable to get tired. He simply does not stop running and has already become a fan favorite. Finally, Salah's two goals will hopefully be key in getting his confidence back up and his play today certainly proved that there should not be anything to worry about with the Egyptian. His play was excellent all around and he deserves plenty of credit.
It was a total team effort for the Reds, one of the best of its kind this season. All the pieces clicked into place and the attacking three really found their footing. The defense held its own as you would hope, keeping chances to a minimum. Joe Gomez had several very nice defensive plays, including a key stop of a pass on the right corner of the defense in a threatening position. Gomez and Virgil van Dijk are the epitome of the 'Rolls-Royce player' label. Quick, technical, and units on the pitch, for my money there's not a better center back duo, not a better center back in the league, period, than van Dijk, and nary a better English center back than the 21-year-old Gomez. The depth of the club when you remember Dejan Lovren, World Cup finalist, and Joel Matip are both on the bench is just even more impressive.
It's easy to gush over the Liverpool side, but what worked tactically? A lot stemmed from the space they were given on the wing, especially down the left wing. Ben had no interest defending the wing when Robertson made forward runs, leaving Filip Stojkovic completely exposed. Stojkovic himself did not play all that high up either, though, leaving the left flank vulnerable. With Fabinho shutting down any chances centrally for the most part (barring a couple of exceptions) Belgrade had no real outlet. They tried to get Richmond Boakye involved valiantly, but he was covered well by van Dijk or Gomez (but generally van Dijk). One striker really does not work against Liverpool. Formations like the 4-2-3-1 or the 4-1-4-1 may be more secure defensively against this Liverpool side, but you sacrifice any semblance of a cohesive attack. Compare formations run by sides that have gotten attacking opportunities/results against Liverpool with those that have not:
PSG: 4-3-3 (two attacking wingers, though ultimately this was partially their undoing)
Napoli: 4-4-2 (two strikers with two wingers given freedom to attack)
Chelsea: 4-3-3 (featuring Eden Hazard on the left)
VERSUS
Tottenham: 4-3-1-2 (two strikers doesn't automatically work, especially given the lack of wing attacking shown)
Manchester City: 4-2-3-1 (this is a massive asterisk, the set-up was fine, but Sergio Aguero was covered up well)
West Ham: 4-2-3-1
Palace: 4-4-2 (this is an exception, though the Palace 4-4-2 is somewhat unorthodox in itself with Benteke serving as a more typical striker and Zaha playing off him)
Brighton: 4-5-1
Leicester: 4-2-3-1
Southampton: 4-1-4-1 (isolated Shane Long on top given nothing to latch on to)
Huddersfield: 4-4-1-1
Belgrade: 4-2-3-1
What can we take from this? Well it's incredibly bare bones to just list off formations, but something shown is that supply lines are so important in finding goals against this Liverpool team. If you run just one main striker on top, the center back duo of van Dijk and Gomez will easily snuff it out leaving full backs Robertson and Alexander-Arnold to cover themselves on the wings while the other center back remains able to stop forward runs out of the midfield. What it's going to take to get past this Liverpool defense is either incredible individual quality or a very well-balanced side that can string together strong opportunities and pick through a very solid defensive side.
What's Next:
A Saturday date with Cardiff at home awaits the Reds before a week off followed by Arsenal away. It's a key pair of matches for Liverpool, one against a side multiple title rivals have already beaten, the other against a top-four contender who title contenders have also already beaten. It will be key to have the entire Liverpool unit in top form as the next week and a half commences.
Follow me on Twitter @RMAB_Ryan for more LFC coverage, including live Tweets during the matches, as well as AFC Ann Arbor and Michigan basketball coverage!
What Happened:
Liverpool started on the front foot and continued that from there. Their first chance came from the boot of Mo Salah, whose early chance in the 11th was smothered by Canadian national keeper Milan Borjan. Belgrade had a solid chance in the 15th off a corner when center back Srdjan Babic came through the box free, but the ball met his boot and skied over the bar. The deadlock would last under ten more minutes, though, and Bobby Firmino got the first goal for the boys in red. Xherdan Shaqiri's ball down the left flank was beautiful to Andy Robertson, and Robertson cut it back into the box for his Brazilian striker to take his time and drill it home. The rest of the first half continued to see Liverpool in comfortable control. In the final minute of the half, though, Gini Wijnaldum picked out Shaqiri well in good position who sent a one-touch pass right to Salah. His right foot was the right one and Salah blasted it past Borjan, doubling the lead right before the half.
The second half was even more dominant than the first. Belgrade barely saw the ball in their attacking half throughout, but the Liverpool scoring continued. Sadio Mane earned his side a penalty after captain Filip Stojkovic held his arm out on the Senegalese man. It was made a meal out of by the winger, but the right call was made in my view. It was not the force, it was the obstruction that was key. Salah took the spot kick and sent it fairly down the middle. Borjan dived away, and the lead was 3-0 quickly. Liverpool won another penalty in the 76th with a handball by winger Ben, but Mane's take was saved well off the bar by Borjan, and the follow was smothered.
Four minutes later, Mane would get his goal. Daniel Sturridge slipped Mane through rather unselfishly and Mane would join his fab three mates in getting a goal on this European evening. It was a 4-0 scoreline and Sturridge's assist joined Robertson and Shaqiri in lovely passes through to find a hole well in the Serbian team's back line. Liverpool had another chance just a minute later as Sturridge again sent a man through, this time Adam Lallana who'd come on as a sub, but Borjan made the save quite well. The last ten minutes plus stoppage time were mere formalities: Liverpool remained the aggressor even up four goals and put away a crucial three points in their quest to continue on in the Champions League.
How Did This Happen:
Liverpool dominated every aspect of this match. The 4-2-3-1 featured Mo Salah as a striker, Bobby Firmino as the attacking-midfielder, Xherdan Shaqiri on the right wing, and Fabinho and Gini Wijnaldum as a double pivot. Firmino dropped deeper in the pitch when necessary to win the ball back, but tonight the man who was synonymous with 'winning the ball' was Fabinho. Fabinho shone with nine (!) tackles won, 80 passes with 90% accuracy (a team high for starters), 96 touches, six aerial duels won, and 18 duels won total (out of 24). His passing range was on full display with well-weighted passes spread all around the field for his teammates, but it was clear early on that no one would be getting past Fabinho if he had something to say about it. He was simply sublime and has been well worth the wait for Jurgen Klopp. His 8.69 rating on WhoScored is a team-high for great reason, he is my own man of the match.
You can make the case for several players of the match on this brilliant evening. Xherdan Shaqiri continues to be a joy to watch as his strength and pace, combined with so many lovely passes, have made him an Anfield hero. This was his top match of the season and with one assist and another key pass on the first goal, it's easy to see why. Andy Robertson was also in top, top form at left back where he sprinted up and down the left wing seemingly unable to get tired. He simply does not stop running and has already become a fan favorite. Finally, Salah's two goals will hopefully be key in getting his confidence back up and his play today certainly proved that there should not be anything to worry about with the Egyptian. His play was excellent all around and he deserves plenty of credit.
It was a total team effort for the Reds, one of the best of its kind this season. All the pieces clicked into place and the attacking three really found their footing. The defense held its own as you would hope, keeping chances to a minimum. Joe Gomez had several very nice defensive plays, including a key stop of a pass on the right corner of the defense in a threatening position. Gomez and Virgil van Dijk are the epitome of the 'Rolls-Royce player' label. Quick, technical, and units on the pitch, for my money there's not a better center back duo, not a better center back in the league, period, than van Dijk, and nary a better English center back than the 21-year-old Gomez. The depth of the club when you remember Dejan Lovren, World Cup finalist, and Joel Matip are both on the bench is just even more impressive.
It's easy to gush over the Liverpool side, but what worked tactically? A lot stemmed from the space they were given on the wing, especially down the left wing. Ben had no interest defending the wing when Robertson made forward runs, leaving Filip Stojkovic completely exposed. Stojkovic himself did not play all that high up either, though, leaving the left flank vulnerable. With Fabinho shutting down any chances centrally for the most part (barring a couple of exceptions) Belgrade had no real outlet. They tried to get Richmond Boakye involved valiantly, but he was covered well by van Dijk or Gomez (but generally van Dijk). One striker really does not work against Liverpool. Formations like the 4-2-3-1 or the 4-1-4-1 may be more secure defensively against this Liverpool side, but you sacrifice any semblance of a cohesive attack. Compare formations run by sides that have gotten attacking opportunities/results against Liverpool with those that have not:
PSG: 4-3-3 (two attacking wingers, though ultimately this was partially their undoing)
Napoli: 4-4-2 (two strikers with two wingers given freedom to attack)
Chelsea: 4-3-3 (featuring Eden Hazard on the left)
VERSUS
Tottenham: 4-3-1-2 (two strikers doesn't automatically work, especially given the lack of wing attacking shown)
Manchester City: 4-2-3-1 (this is a massive asterisk, the set-up was fine, but Sergio Aguero was covered up well)
West Ham: 4-2-3-1
Palace: 4-4-2 (this is an exception, though the Palace 4-4-2 is somewhat unorthodox in itself with Benteke serving as a more typical striker and Zaha playing off him)
Brighton: 4-5-1
Leicester: 4-2-3-1
Southampton: 4-1-4-1 (isolated Shane Long on top given nothing to latch on to)
Huddersfield: 4-4-1-1
Belgrade: 4-2-3-1
What can we take from this? Well it's incredibly bare bones to just list off formations, but something shown is that supply lines are so important in finding goals against this Liverpool team. If you run just one main striker on top, the center back duo of van Dijk and Gomez will easily snuff it out leaving full backs Robertson and Alexander-Arnold to cover themselves on the wings while the other center back remains able to stop forward runs out of the midfield. What it's going to take to get past this Liverpool defense is either incredible individual quality or a very well-balanced side that can string together strong opportunities and pick through a very solid defensive side.
What's Next:
A Saturday date with Cardiff at home awaits the Reds before a week off followed by Arsenal away. It's a key pair of matches for Liverpool, one against a side multiple title rivals have already beaten, the other against a top-four contender who title contenders have also already beaten. It will be key to have the entire Liverpool unit in top form as the next week and a half commences.
Follow me on Twitter @RMAB_Ryan for more LFC coverage, including live Tweets during the matches, as well as AFC Ann Arbor and Michigan basketball coverage!
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