Player ratings: Southampton 1-0 Liverpool
If we thought Newcastle was bad, this was worse. This was our worst display of the season for me, even worse than Villa in my opinion and in a ratings first, there’s no McMOTM. I’ve thought about it for ages and I don’t think any were worthy of the honour. Anyway, let’s get this show on the road.
Alisson (5) – Nothing he could do for the goal but an Adrian-esqe pass almost cost a second goal and then misjudged another when playing the sweeper role that had to be cleared off the line. One to forget for Alisson.
TAA (3) – I’ve been saying it for a number of weeks now but something is wrong with Trent. I don’t know if it’s physical, issues away from the pitch or whatever but he’s been poor all season, his body language is poor and it’s getting worse game by game. God only knows what he was doing when they scored, he set a new record for the season for the amount of times he gave the ball away and his delivery and set pieces are a million miles away from what we know he’s capable of. Time for Klopp to show some of that famed man management with Trent.
Henderson (6) – Looked uncomfortable at best in the CB role. Screaming endlessly but it seemed more nervous energy than any real direction. Could have done with him in the midfield.
Fabinho (6) – Reasonable performance from Fab but struggled to contain Ings pace and movement at times. Long passing not great either.
Robertson (6) – No lack of endeavour from Robbo but it just wasn’t happening for him in an attacking sense. I did notice on a number of occasions though that he’d got in a good crossing position but when he looked up, there was nobody in the box. Picked up a silly booking for a petulant foul.
Thiago (6) – Mixed bag for Thiago on his first start since returning from injury. Conceded the free kick they scored from, although it was about as soft as they come. Booked with his next challenge as frustration kicked in. Showed glimpses of his passing range but that’s all it was. Much more to come from him.
Wijnaldum (5) – Played like he didn’t know what his role in midfield was meant to be and was too often on the periphery of the game.
Ox (4) – Truth be told, I can barely remember Ox getting a touch. Didn’t get himself into any shooting opportunities and the midfield was too congested for his driving runs. Totally ineffective.
Salah (4.5) – Salah’s poor run of form continues. His passing was atrocious, even the simple ones and his decision making has been poor for the last few games. Running into groups of players or holding on to the ball too long. Needs to rediscover his scoring touch as when he isn’t scoring, his all round play leaves a lot to be desired.
Firmino (5) – After a mini resurgence a few weeks back, Bobby has reverted to type in the last few games. Pressed well enough as he always does but was a passenger for long periods of the game.
Mane (6) – Looked the likeliest of our attackers to create something but that bar wasn’t set very high. Indeed it was Mane’s tame 75th minute effort that registered our first shot on target in the match. Not his night but at least he made their fullback earn his wages.
Subs:
Shaqiri (5) – Picked up where Ox left off.
Milner (6) – Came on at RB after Trent was mercifully subbed.
Klopp-watch (2) – I was surprised to see both Thiago and Ox starting. Two players just back from lengthy layoffs, who have never played together and there was a clear lack of cohesion and direction in midfield. Hendo at CB was a failed experiment as well in my opinion. I remember Klopp previously saying that he had the options of Hendo, Milner or Robbo at CB but I really don’t see it myself. Minamino has been bizarrely frozen out after his best display in an LFC shirt against Palace, despite the fact our forwards are stinking the place out just now as well. Some strange decisions from Klopp the last few games.
Summary
Ultimately we need a CB. At least one and you could make an argument for two. Granted, we lost last night through our inability to create rather than poor CB play but it’s the knock on effect of having two of your first choice three midfielders playing CB. There’s a reason why Fabinho, Hendo and Gini have been Klopp’s preferred midfield for the past two, very successful seasons. We coped admirably for a while with our defensive crisis but it was bound to take its toll eventually. We really need to dip into the market this month.
Villa on Friday in the cup then and some of our players should be in line for a much needed rest, namely Robbo, Hendo and Fabinho. I’m really concerned about overloading Fabinho with games. He’s already had a hamstring problem this season, if he was to be missing for even 6 weeks I don’t know how we’d cope. We need to rest players, even if that means sacrificing the result, as much as we do need to bounce back from a poor run of games.
I’m not overly concerned long term. The boys have had a blip but they’re too good and too well drilled for it to last too long. Klopp needs to find a CB solution though. You don’t win titles with a back four full of midfielders… Walk on!
Recent Comments