Ross – @rossic89
Right, the season is back and by the look of it, so are the Reds!
After each, or most, games I’ll be looking at The Big Takes. A bit like ‘Things We Learned’ just a different name really. You can agree or disagree or simply get involved in the comments below and let me know your thoughts on the game.
Just getting warmed up…
That wasn’t ‘full throttle’ Liverpool. In fact, we’ve not really played like that for a while. BUT, it was a professional away performance. Controlled, measured and essentially, we just got the job done.
It’s early days, we’ve got some players coming back from huge injuries or ones who haven’t played a Premier League game for months on end; Tsimikas, van Dijk, Matip, Keita & Ox have all hardly kicked a ball in intense football like that for a long time so it was a huge positive to see them get the minutes under their belt and more importantly, some confidence.
I mean confidence for them but also for me, for you, for the coaching staff. The big caveat all summer has been “if so and so can stay fit” which to be fair is still very much the case. But I didn’t really expect van Dijk to start never mind play 90 minutes. Keita 83 minutes. You can have the doubt in your mind about fitness or injuries but you also have to take the positives from each game as it comes. If it goes wrong, it goes wrong.
It may come back to bite me on the backside but I think we’ll be ok. of course at some point some lads will get injured. They play a game where you run round and get kicked for a living. I’d be injured. But Keita and Ox have been managed, there is NO WAY on Gods earth van Dijk starts that game if he’s not ready. We’ve now got an army of centre backs at our disposal, there’s no need to rush him. Yes he’s the best in the world but he’s clearly good to go. Might be a bit rusty, but that’s cool with me.
Options off the bench
Well bugger me we literally have bit of depth. Fabinho, Konaté, Bobby, Gomez & Elliott on the bench. And that’s not including Thiago, Henderson, Jones & Robertson. It’s mental. I’d have bitten your hand off for that bench last season. With the first 11 being strong too.
I’ll bring it back to the original caveat of keeping them all fit and dear god don’t think this is propaganda to say we don’t need improvements. We absolutely do. Shaq wasn’t on the bench either, nor was Phillips. So when have a big think about it, we actually look alright don’t we?
Alright in terms of depth but it’s healthy competitiveness, people pushing each other for places, not just playing someone with two working legs in whatever position just get through it all.
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Mo Salah is the King
This is nothing new but I still think it’s worth pointing out. I don’t want to take him for granted.
Who knew that Liverpool playing with CB’s that fit our style would have a role in how our full backs play, would give a solid base to our midfield, for the likes of Keita and Ox to commit forward, to provide support for the front three.
Everything in that team was built to work efficiently, to the highest quality, to win leagues and trophies….provided it had the right player that were nurtured to do the very same.
The front three have had a big rest, they are back playing football with their mates, they’ve got the support from the like of Ox and Keita, we’re able to commit bodies forward and just look at the difference it makes.
It’s a clean slate, a chance to biff off last season, don’t worry about it anymore. It’s done. Mo was on fire today, he always is during the first game of the season. Two assists and a goal to kick him off and he’ll take that into Burnley, into Chelsea and the rest of the season.
We also saw team play from Mo, which isn’t a shock to you and me. It might be to the likes of Sky and the main stream media who exacerbate anything and everything to do with Mo. So many chances he could of, and to be fair, should have had a shot and he didn’t, he looked for his mates. Good for him.
Crowds are back…
Now this goes both ways. First off, I was so happy to see people travelling down to Norwich on trains, cars and buses, enjoying themselves, necking the beers, singing songs. It’s part of football which oddly felt a bit nostalgic today but time and time again today all I could hear watching the game was the travelling Kop. So good to hear them in full voice singing van Dijk’s song, Bobby’s song, Allez, Allez, Allez and YNWA. Football is back and it feels so good. I cannot wait for next week!
Secondly, I think it’s important to remember that’s the first time Norwich have had a full crowd since they pissed the Championship. We saw Arsenal crumble, or actually, Brentford buoyed by their home fans and the effect it had on the game, well Liverpool dealt with all of that too. As well as controlling the game, they controlled the crowd too. And they should be applauded for it.
Ross – @rossic89
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