Liverpool 1-2 Leeds United – The Final Written Word
By: Collin Hockenbury.
Was it a dead rubber or a stab at a four-goal win? A game that deserved our best 11 or a chance to use the squad? It’s hard to ignore the weird context of this game. However, the team owed it to themselves and the fanbase to bounce back from Leeds and redeem themselves from their last showing against Napoli—the unbeaten Serie A leaders and the in-form team in Europe.
Here are five major takeaways from the game that saw us take second place in the group.
We may have missed Ibou more than we realized.
We lost the final in Paris, but Ibrahima Konate was close to perfect against Madrid’s formidable attack. Back in the side for the last group game of this year’s Champions League campaign, he showed he can still stand up to world-class talent, putting in a true MOTM performance.
All of his best qualities were on display. He took advantage of his size to win duels and get in blocks. He used his speed to make vital interceptions. He even nailed a perfect Joel Matip impression at times, taking off on long runs to kickstart attacks when Napoli allowed him a little time and space. You can’t overstate the value of a willing and able ball carrier in the backline.
Victor Osimhen caused us all sorts of problems in the away fixture, and Ibou kept him from doing anything of note on Tuesday. It’s not a dig at Joe Gomez, whose contributions we’ll need across all competitions, but Konate looks like he has to be the first-choice partner for Van Dijk moving forward.
It was hard to find fault with everyone’s favourite scapegoat.
Since his return from injury, Curtis Jones has been anything but a fan favourite when he has featured. “He wouldn’t play for us if he weren’t Scouse” has been a common thread, and he’s one of the first players our supporters have pointed to after our recent disappointments. On Tuesday, he reminded us of what he can bring to the team: fast feet and smart decisions. He was involved in multiple chances, and even though he didn’t finish them off, he showed real composure in and around the box, as well as in the middle of the park when he was put under pressure. Back passes are neither sexy nor popular, but sometimes they’re needed, and he looked like a mature footballer in that respect. Solid display on the left wing from Curt.
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You can be a “set piece team” and play footie at the same time.
Granted, we did escape conceding from a set piece by the skin of our teeth. But in the second half, set pieces led to several of our best chances and obviously the two goals. Tsimikas’ dead ball delivery continues to be one of his prized assets. It was great to see us cash in on some great crosses late in the game to bag a win, even if both finishes were scruffy.
Clearly, as a possession-based side, we need to create patterns with the ball that allow us to score from open play. That doesn’t mean we should ignore our aerial ability and height, real weapons in the box—particularly when we target the centre backs and Darwin. Speaking of Darwin…
Our new 27 impacts everything.
Doesn’t matter if Twitter thinks Sunday leaguers have better ball control. Doesn’t matter if he ripped his shirt off in the Community Shield. When you’re talking about an effective forward, all that matters is whether they’re creating chances and scoring goals. And Darwin does both. A lot.
With about 20 minutes to make his mark (minus the time spent on the VAR review), he scored one, assisted one and could have easily assisted another with a bolt down the left side and a beautiful cross along the floor, which was headed right for Salah’s foot before a defender’s toe took away a tap in.
We all love and miss Sadio Mane. Darwin will never be Sadio—they’re very different players with different levels of experience. You can’t argue with our new signing’s XG, though. If he develops into the player we’re all hoping he can be, there will be frustrations along the way. But there will be excitement, chaos, hustle and goals, too.
Losing to the worst, beating the best. Time for some stability.
How can the same team lose to Forest and Leeds but beat Manchester City and Napoli in the same three-week period?
Napoli are clearly a skilled, organized, good team, and we beat them in a very competitive showing. Again, you can’t really look at this game in isolation. Maybe the two sides approach it with a different attitude and our fans approach it with more ferocity if a lopsided win isn’t the only way to change the result of the group. Looking at the way things played out, however, certain points are undeniable.
The margins are so fine at this level. If Napoli’s goal stands, everything changes, and it was ruled out by inches. Darwin’s goal was ruled onside by inches. Maybe if another ref is on VAR when Haaland pulls Fabinho down in the buildup to City’s goal, they let it stand. Or if Virgil decides to just score against Forest instead of squaring his open header, we go on to win by four. Small moments and split-second decisions are impacting the result of every game we’re playing right now. It’s up to the players and staff to stop letting one or two moments a game define our season. That means finding a sustainable way to control games: staying compact without the ball, occupying the right spaces with the ball and becoming ruthless in front of goal.
It’s not all down to tactics either. The body language felt different against Napoli. While the outcome didn’t hold its usual importance, the performance still mattered enormously. We needed momentum and belief, not necessarily three points, and the players seemed to respond to that simple task. When we’re on it, we can beat anybody. It just takes the right mentality, the one we’ve shown for years. Well, that and a team of healthy players, including first-team calibre options on the bench. After the World Cup, we should have that again.
Great win and a step in the right direction. Bring on Spurs.
