A breath of fresh air
Boy did we need a performance like that. Now I’m not going to get carried away, we didn’t win by a large margin, we didn’t even create loads of chances but it was just so refreshing to see a team actually look like Liverpool this season. The energy was back, the intensity and the pressing from the first minute.
Klopp once famously said that no playmaker was better than an effective counter press and he’s right. We saw that last night as our players hassled and harried a Wolves defence that played around us with such ease last week, forcing them into errors and ceding possession time and again and with every success, the confidence grew, the fans were off their feet – it sounded like a home game for large sections of the game and we got our reward.
Young Bajcetic in the middle of the park was excellent, he’s not afraid to put his foot into a tackle but is also technically very proficient and has the confidence to play his own game. Unlucky to miss out on McMOTM but I’m going for Harvey for last night. He’s come in for some stick this season but he never hides and he ran himself into the ground last night. His goal was the difference though and that’s what has tipped McMOTM in his favour. It was an excellent strike from distance, although I don’t think the Wolves keeper will want to see the replay.
Milner at RB looked more solid than we have all season in that position and our somewhat makeshift defence reduced Wolves to nothing but half chances really, with Kelleher rarely troubled.
Keita was lively in the middle of the pitch and at least brings some energy to our midfield, although he did somewhat embarrass himself feigning injury after receiving a wee tap off the ball second half. He could be an important player for us in the second half of the season if (and it’s a big if) he can stay fit.
Gakpo got another hour under his belt and while it’s too early to say I’m concerned about him, I would like to see him try and make more of an impact on games. He looks a bit lost at the moment, looks low on confidence and isn’t playing with any conviction at all. I’d like to see a bit more aggression and decisiveness in his play moving forward. We have a lot of forwards now and once they’re fit, if Cody doesn’t start making an impact then he won’t play. Like I said though, it’s too early to be making any kind of decision on him but I would like to see him take some responsibility and try and make things happen for himself.
All in all though, a much better display than we’ve seen in a long time and it gives Klopp something of a headache for the Chelsea game. Does he bring the big guns who have been consistently underperforming back in or stick with more youthful exuberance? For me, a combination of the two. I think Bajcetic has done enough to keep his place, especially given how dysfunctional our midfield has been this season but on the other end of the scale, I wouldn’t be against Milner starting in midfield either. Neither Hendo nor Fabinho could have any complaints about losing their place in the squad at present.
Anyway, first game in a while where writing the post match article hasn’t been a depressing chore so long may that last. We desperately need to turn our league form around now and hopefully last night can be a springboard for doing just that. Chelsea next and they’ve been struggling even more than us so it would be nice to put the final nail in their top four coffin this season and start climbing the table ourselves.
End of the storm? Too early to say but at the very least it was a break in the clouds. Walk on!
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