LFC 20/21 – The Good, The Bad The Ugly – Gameweek 17
Losing on the south coast, it’s the performance that hurt the most. A win comes in the cup, because opposition kids just couldn’t keep up. The Reds won’t bring in new faces, so let’s see if they can stay in the races. The Good, The Bad and The Ugly, another week reviewed at the world’s favourite football club Liverpool F.C.
The Good
Getting past Aston Villa to reach the FA Cup fourth round with a 1-4 win over Aston Villa at Villa Park. Their hosts fielded a team of youth and fringe players, due to a significant outbreak of COVID-19.
To be fair, this young Villa team gave a very good account of themselves and an equaliser from Louie Barry showed Liverpool that they were indeed in a match.
However, after taking the lead through Sadio Mané, the Reds were able to run out comfortable winners following another from Mané, in between goals from Gini Wijnaldum and Mo Salah in a five minute spell early in the second half.
We can’t ignore though, that the game really turned after the introduction of Thiago Alcantara for the second half. His range of passing and experience brought an air of calmness to the proceedings after a first half where Liverpool struggled for cohesion.
As the game wore on, the superior fitness of a strong Liverpool side was too much for a Villa team consisting of seven under-23s and four under-18s players. This was literally a game of boys against men and the superior fitness of the visitors ultimately tamed the enthusiasm of youth.
What stood out in this game was the professionalism of the Liverpool team. A complete contrast to the Villa side that beat Liverpool’s young team in the competition last season whilst the senior squad was away on World Club Cup duty. You’d have thought they’d won the World Cup against Brazil, the way they celebrated.
The Reds are through. Credit though, to the young Villa side who showed that their club is in good hands for the future.
Super performance from the Villa young lads. Enjoyable game to watch, good for the FA cup. Thiago is a joy to watch, hopefully stays injury free now. #ASTLIV
— Michael Casey (@Money_MikeCasey) January 8, 2021
The Bad
The Reds’ form over the festive period. The current table over the last six games will show Liverpool in a lowly sixth place. They have failed to beat West Bromwich Albion, Newcastle and this week’s 0-1 defeat to Southampton has simply served to underline the struggles.
Despite wins against Tottenham (2-1) and and Crystal Palace (0-7), the forerunner to those results was of course, the 1-1 draw with Fulham. Not a great run of results in anyone’s book, let alone that of the Champions. Especially with the upcoming game against manyoo on Sunday.
Starting against Southampton with Jordan Henderson in central defence, despite having youngsters Rhys Williams and and Nat Phillips fit and ready to play, seems a strange selection in my opinion. Yes, the captain is an experienced player of course. However he’s no central defender. Add to that the fact that Trent Alexander-Arnold had a mare – likely due to being exhausted, whilst Neco Williams keeps the bench warm simply raises eyebrows.
With all due respect to the Saints, both Williams and Phillips were capable of playing – and playing effectively against them. The result was met by Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl falling to his knees in tears, having beaten Klopp for the first time in his career. Go figure.
There are problems at the other end also as the strikers haven’t looked themselves recently. Call me a cynic but has this all coincided with the claim that Salah is “unhappy” and wants a move? This wouldn’t be the first time one player’s mood affects the team around him. To be fair, they are getting chances. They simply can’t finish for toffee.
This isn’t a must-win game for the Reds this weekend. If this Manyoo side is anything, they’re inconsistent so even if they do get the points on Sunday, they’re just as likely to drop points soon after.
Same story as recent games for #LFC. Struggling to create chances, weak at the back. Whole team off form, the big risk is that the league slips away over these weeks.
— Paul Grech (@paul_grech) January 4, 2021
The Ugly
No new arrivals (apparently), coming in to cover for the defensive woes. Rumour has it that the next recruitment in this area will be a long term successor to Joe Matip who has been dogged by injuries since his arrival from Schalke 04 in 2016.
If the rumours are true, then one can only assume Klopp doesn’t rate either of the current young defenders in Williams or Phillips. A somewhat harsh appraisal given their contribution so far this season.
The question must be asked as to why the club recruited Thiago in the summer when it has always been clear a replacement was needed for Dejan Lovren after he was sold? Thiago, although he’s a great player – no question, wasn’t a priority for Liverpool.
Let’s see what Klopp and company have up their sleeves. They made similar noises in the summer, only for them to bring in Diogo Jota and Thiago.
Mirror: https://t.co/oVEVay5Jvf – Liverpool transfer-news: Klopp opens up on centre-back plan as Balogun linked #LFC
— Anfield Road (@anfieldroad) January 8, 2021
Next Up
We have of course, the visit of Manyoo on Sunday, then Sean Dyche and his Tykes come on Thursday. Then there’s the small trip down the East Lancs Road to play Manyoo in the FA Cup.
While you’re here…
The latest book from the The Good, The Bad and The Ugly weekly is out now. Relive this historic season. Available for purchase on Amazon, or directly from The LFC File. Click here to secure your copy. Either as an eBook (€5) or as a physical paperback (€8).
