LFC 21/22 – The Good, The Bad And The Ugly – Gameweek #11
Defeating Atlético, sweeter than Haribo. Wham bam thank you ma’am say West Ham, while the Reds lose the program. Then we see a red flag, as the boss really loses his rag. The Good, The Bad and The Ugly. Another week reviewed at Liverpool Football Club.
The Good
Beating Athlético Madrid 2-0 at Anfield in the return leg of the Champions League group stage match.
The Reds have now qualified from Group B with two games to spare, having won all of their fixtures. In a group that many thought was going to tougher than it actually was, Liverpool have sent a signal of intent to the rest of the teams in the competition.
Two first half goals from Diogo Jota and Sadio Mané put Liverpool in the driving seat, helped further by Atlético central defender Felipe picking up a straight red card for bringing down Mané. The visitors had seemingly made the Senegalese international their primary target with a string of late and over-zealous challenges.
Pantomime villain and former Reds favourite Luis Suarez had a goal chalked off for off-side to complete a miserable night for him.
FULL-TIME!
LIVERPOOL 🔴 2-0 ATLETICO MADRID 🔵
WHAT A WIN 😍#LIVATM #LFC 🔴 pic.twitter.com/bMibjWG4hA
— Liverpool FC 🔴 (@Reds_ENG) November 3, 2021
Just when you thought everything in the Anfield garden was smelling as sweet as roses, along comes a waft of something else that brings you back down to earth. Hence this week’s…
The Bad
Losing to West Ham 3-2 at the London Stadium. Despite coming into this game as the only unbeaten team so far this season, Liverpool’s vulnerability to a counter-attack was exposed by David Moyes’ hardworking and organised outfit.
The Hammers were genuinely good value for the result, having taken the lead by muscling out Alisson at a fourth-minute corner. The Reds equalised as half time approached but to be honest, they never convinced throughout.
Two West Ham goals a in less than 10 minutes in the second half put the game beyond their hosts. The visitors’ attempts to turn the game, although gallant and full of endeavour, were ultimately uninspiring.
Even Divock Origi’s 84th minute goal couldn’t restore much hope in the most ardent of fans. Sadio Mané could have equalised with an agonisingly close header in the dying moments, but it just wasn’t to be on the night.
This result was as compelling as it was expected, which means: not very. Some of Liverpools defending in the last game or two has left a lot to be desired.
Frankly a poor showing from the entire team. Perhaps you could argue Alisson didn’t have his best game, but then they win as a team and therefore lose as one also. Next!
⚒ @WestHam beat the unbeaten ⚒#WHULIV pic.twitter.com/HjBEo2PtxN
— Premier League (@premierleague) November 7, 2021
The Ugly
Jürgen Klopp losing his rag with BBC journalist Rob Nothman during his past-match interview. The manager was clearly irritated by what he thought was a foul on Alisson for the first West Ham goal.
“My god. I’m not your puppy. Hopefully, you have an opinion yourself. All good.”
Then, when asked about a possible red card for Aaron Cresswell’s tackle on Jordan Henderson, the boss hit back “My god. I’m not your puppy. Hopefully, you have an opinion yourself. All good.”
A sign of uneasiness from the Reds boss who saw his opponents jump above him in the table, leaving Liverpool in fourth place.
With just one point separating second and fourth, this is shaping up to be a titanic tussle should things remain this close over the run up to the festive period.
Jurgen Klopp tells reporter "I'm not your puppy" in prickly post-match interview – Mirror Online #LFC #Liverpool #LiverpoolFC 🔴⚽️ #WHULIV #WHULFC https://t.co/5z9PUblpXN
— Go follow original a/c @LFC_Belief (@LisaLouLah) November 8, 2021
Not to mention Arsenal who, just two points behind Liverpool, have found their mojo under Mikel Arteta after a poor start to the campaign. Oh… and guess who Liverpool welcome to Anfield in their next fixture?
