jekyll & hide

Happy Weekend, LEGION. 

 

Most of the time, I am very lucky, and writing the blog is easy. We were on a terrific winning run, and writing about victory will always be easier than writing about draws or defeats.

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You get the odd time, though, when it's hard, and last night's game made for today's blog being a hard one.

 

I mean, it was 0-0 and when you stop to analyse it, not much happened. Still, I have managed to dredge up some ideas for the deep recesses of my brain to keep you all going with some content. You're welcome.

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OPENING THOUGHTS

Liverpool, minus some serious star power, was, even by their own fans' admission, there for the taking, and we let them off the hook with some missed opportunities in the first half and an inexplicable disappearing act in the second.

 

Pre-match, it felt like our moment had come. A starting eleven almost at full strength against a Liverpool side robbed of their talisman, Salah, their player of the season, Ekitike and their blockbuster signing, Isak.

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This was it. This was the night we showed the rest of the league it was our year. All the City fans hate watching would realise, for the second year running, this year ain't it.

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What we ultimately gave them (and Villa) was hope. The worst thing you can give to a chasing team, and our second-half performance injected life back into them.

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THE LINEUP

I guessed our lineup spot on, but like I said in the preview, the team at the moment is picking itself. Kai the Guy was missing again, so either Arteta doesn't trust his fitness for a title run-in, or he's had another setback and doesn't want to say so. Not sure how you get match fit if you don't play matches, but there you go.

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Calafiori's return can't come quick enough as Hincapie limped off injured last night, like seriously, WTF man? Its never ending. I say our Italians return needs to be quick because holy shizz, MLS had a cameo to forget. If Frimpong had any real semblance of talent, we would have lost that game.

 

I can only imagine what Mo Salah running down the wing would have done to him. The poor lad looks shot of confidence. Hopefully, if the FA Cup game goes ahead, he starts and plays well, he needs it.

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​THE MATCH

It was a strange game. The first half was a good watch, and we played well. The second half was an awful spectacle, and we played terribly, and that was down to Liverpool.

 

At the end of the day, though, we can't be like Slot, constantly whining that it's not fair because other teams aren't setting up to let us win. We needed to find a way, a solution and didn't. Thats on us.

 

In the first half, we were fresh, inventive, dominant in possession, and looked by far the better side. All we lacked was that final cut back finding a team-mate or something to land for us in a scrambled, packed penalty area.

 

In the end, we were lucky to go in level at half time as Bradley had arguably the best chance, hitting the bar with a chipped effort after a Saliba and Raya mix-up.

 

The second half was a different story entirely.

 

I'm no Twitter tactico, but to me it looked like Slot switched from a 4-2-3-1 to a 4-6-0. When out of possession, he went man for man with a combination of Szoboszlai, Wirtz, Gakpo, and Frimpong, all taking turns marking Zubimendi, Rice, and the two wide areas. When we tried to build out from the back, we had nowhere to go and ended up playing long and turning over possession.

 

Playing defensively is not always about parking the bus. Liverpool showed a different way last night. In possession, with them having no centre forward but six midfielders, we were completely outmanned in there, and they spent the entire second 45 playing keep away, mostly in their own half or in the middle of the pitch.

 

This, of course, meant they had zero attacking output except Anthony Taylor constantly giving them free kicks within shooting distance. This kind of thing was exactly what they were hoping for, as they didn't have the numbers or the threat from open play with their changed setup.

 

For the first time in 600 league games, they didn't have a single shot on target. The last time that happened was in 2010 vs Wigan. I don't understand the praise they are receiving in the media. Their second-half performance was cowardly. I don't apologise for saying it. Playing six in midfield with no striker might not be called parking the bus, but it's certainly straying towards valet parking at the very minimum.

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I feel for Arteta. I mean, how do you tactically combat that? By doing the same, so the numbers are even? Having 12 players all bumping into each other in midfield with no strikers to pass to? Bonkers stuff.

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I'm surprised Merino didn't come off the bench so we could play a longer game. If we couldn't build from the back, then let's go direct to someone we know is terrific in the air and work from there. Pretty passing football isn't always available. Horses for courses, right?

 

We could have Set Piece Fc'd it at the very death and got the win, but Gabi J, for some inexplicable reason, decided to jump into Gabi at the Back just as he was getting set to head in the winner. Was that kind of night.

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A couple of talking points to clear up.

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Trossard's foul on Wirtz, I thought, honestly, was a penalty. He clumsily lunges his leg out. If it's up the other end, I'm screaming for it. The Frimpong one, however, is absolute nonsense. Twists his own ankle and stays down injured in the hope it makes for good VAR persuasion. Not having it.

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I am also a grown-up about the whole Martinelli/Bradley thing. Jesus H Christ, you'd think by some scousers' reactions that poor Gabi had snapped his leg in two on purpose. Players fake injury at least 90% of the time to chew up the clock, so they cannot complain when they are genuinely hurt, and someone has the hump with them and wants them off the pitch.

 

It's an absolute nothing burger, and I wouldn't even have mentioned it if it were the other way round. Some Liverpool fans need to relax and stop crying like children on social media, like there's been some major crime committed. Get a grip.

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WHAT IT MEANS

The missed opportunity means we are only six points ahead of City and Villa, not eight. It also means our Redemption Tour's perfect record ended. Still, if we beat Forest next weekend, we will have taken 16 points from 18 across those six games we failed to win last season. That's still a terrific return with the injuries we've had to deal with.

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HONOURABLE MENTIONS

Normally, I work my way through half the team when I'm doing these, but there really weren't that many outstanding performances.

 

I am going to mention Big Gabi at the Back, though. Only his third start since returning from injury, and I thought he was immense. I lost count of the number of blocked shots he had, plus, as always, he was a threat right to the end in the opposition's box. I thought him and his sidekick, Saliba, whom I know I take for granted and don't mention enough, were both terrific.

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MAN OF THE MATCH

My MOTM is going to another defender though and that is......