Liverpool FC – Gameweek 10 Review

Good morning, afternoon and evening wherever you are, and welcome to another weekly review of the goings on at the world’s favourite football club. A place in the EFL quarter final. Joint first… Yes, FIRST in the Premier League. Disgruntlement over referees and more. The good, the bad and the unsportingly ugly at Liverpool Football Club.

The Good

It won’t take a Steven Hawkins to work out it’s the continuing progress in the EFL Cup. Liverpool welcomed Tottenham Hotspurs to Anfield for what turned out to be – in essence – a battle of the reserves.

Having watched the game, it’s clear the future of the Reds is looking very bright indeed. Trent Alexander-Arnold, Ovie Ejaria, Kevin Stewart and Divock Origi – Marko Grujic. All potentially great players. The sprinkling of experience in Lucas Leiva, Ragnar Klavan and of course Daniel Sturridge, point to a second string that shows what strength in depth the first team squad now posses.

Having seen off the Spurs winning 2-1, Liverpool booked their place in the quarter finals. They say, you’ve gotta be in it to win it. Jürgen Klopp and his Liverpool team still are, so what more can one ask for at this stage?

Yesterday the team went down to saarf London to face eternal bogey team Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park. An inhospitable, higgledy-piggledy ground with tremendously passionate fans. The scene of the crime where Liverpool threw away a three-goal lead in the May of 2014 and with it, any chance of winning the Premier League. Not to mention a few cup tussles here and there over the years.

A masterful performance from Philippe Coutinho. Goals from Emre Can, Dejan Lovren, Joel Matip and Roberto Firmino was enough to secure another three points. At the same time, disguising some “terrible defending”, as an ex-Liverpool defender used to say. The Jekyll and Hyde show that is Liverpool’s attack and defence continues apace.

All things considered, the most important thing is the three points. The Reds now sit jointly in third place with 20 points. This is shaping up to be one of the most exciting Premierships races we’ve seen. And, what makes it even more pleasing, is that the place is secured regardless as to what happens in today’s games. It’s a genuine position. Not a simple temporary mathematical one.

At this rate, I’m beginning to believe.

The Bad

An old expression says: In every life, a little rain must fall. Wise words indeed, and applicable to Liverpool’s week. Youngster Alexander-Arnold was guilty of a terrible tackle on Tottenham Hotspurs’ Ben Davies. Spurs Manager Mauricio Pochettino was quite rightly furious with the challenge. In addition, the apparent hypocritical behaviour of Klopp and his  assistant Zeljko Buvac, who defended the youngster – only to protest when visiting player Kevin Wimmer was yellow-carded for clattering into Danny Ings.

We all want to defend our team. This is understandable but, in my opinion, 18 year-old Alexander-Arnold should probably have been sent off for the challenge. Some of life’s lessons need to be learnt the hard way, and it wouldn’t have done him any harm to think about what he’d done. With being a professional footballer, comes responsibility.

The Unsportingly Ugly

Yesterday’s game saw yet more criticism of the referee. Eagles manager, Alan Pardew wasn’t in the mood for dancing – after his side denied two penalty shouts.

Pardew was unhappy that referee Andre Marriner was appointed to officiate the game. Citing the fact that he awarded Liverpool a late penalty in last season’s game at Selhurst. Ugly? Perhaps not. However, it does point to a worrying trend in the game.

I wasn’t aware of any moral reason that prevents a referee from participating in a match in which he previously issued a red card or penalty. This is not only absurd, but also disrespectful to Marriner. The insinuation is that he is biassed. I’m not saying that because Liverpool were on the winning side. Simply because it isn’t right. Had Klopp made such statements, I’d have taken the same view. Fortunately, the Reds’ manager is above this kind of outburst.

That just about covers it for this week. Liverpool are now unbeaten in eight matches. I’m not sure if this represents title winning form, but it certainly represents third place form. The month of November represents a difficult one. Why? Because Liverpool do not play any “top” sides. The home game against Watford next weekend marks the beginning of a run of games against Southampton, Sunderland and Leeds. Without being disrespectful, these are all teams who on paper at least, Liverpool should be defeating in order to achieve their ambitions.

However, as I always point out, football isn’t played on paper, it’s on grass and this is where Liverpool need to maintain the momentum. An improvement in the defending wouldn’t go amiss either!

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