LFC 21/22 – The Good, The Bad And The Ugly – Gameweeks #32 & 33
The Reds put four past United, and the wrongs of the Blues are firmly righted. Games come thick and fast, let’s hope the legs last. The Good, The Bad and The Ugly. Another week reviewed at Liverpool Football Club.
The Good
Beating Manchester United 4-0 at Anfield. It’s always an absolute pleasure to defeat the Red half of Manchester. Given the recent fortunes of each side, the result shouldn’t really come as a surprise. However, any Liverpool fan will admit, even if United were bottom in League Two, they’d still take that much more joy from this result than all others (perhaps except one… see The (Not) Bad below).
“A good result for all with a Liverpool heart”
A double from Mo Salah, sandwiched in between an opener from Luis Diaz and a goal from Sadio Mané put this game well beyond a hapless United side who, for every man, was simply not at the races. Not even close. Thiago Alcantara. pulled all of the strings in midfield, Joel Matip and Virgil van Dijk were majestic in defence whilst Diaz, Mané and Salah were clinical in attack. To be fair, this was a total team performance. “A good result for all with a Liverpool heart” enthused Jürgen Klopp after the final whistle.
𝗔𝗡𝗢𝗧𝗛𝗘𝗥 𝗕𝗜𝗚 𝗧𝗛𝗥𝗘𝗘 𝗣𝗢𝗜𝗡𝗧𝗦 ✊#LIVMUN pic.twitter.com/QFVIpRB5xm
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) April 19, 2022
Overall, this was a humiliation for the visitors. This result meant that Liverpool have scored nine goals against United in this single season, even worse, without reply.
United were without their talisman Christian Ronaldo who missed the game due to the passing of his new-born baby son. A moving tribute to the no. 7 was paid by the Kop, who held up his number 7 shirt up, sang “You’ll Never Walk Alone” and clapped in the seventh minute. A touch of class from a set of class fans. As a parent, I can only imagine too well the sadness he must feel. Sometimes there are more important things in life than football.
The (Not) Bad
Another derby victory against Everton. The 2-0 victory was all the more sweeter for getting one over the Blue’s boss Frank Lampard. The jumped-up former Chelsea and England midfielder was less than courteous to the Liverpool manager during his time as Chelsea manager, and I for one was pleased to see him leave Anfield empty-handed.
This was a hard-fought result with the Blue noses happy to foul their way through the first half and waste time whenever possible. Most notably through goalkeeper Jordan Pickford who saw fit to fall to the ground clutching the ball whenever he was in possession. He wasn’t smiling in the second half though, when Alisson Becker done the same thing to mimic him when Liverpool were 2-0 up and their neighbours completely out of ideas and the game. Hilarious. Goals from Andy Robertson (yes, Andy Robertson) and of course… the irrepressible Divock Origi settling the discussion.
Everton weren’t helped either by their attempts to con the referee. Local lad Anthony Gordon succeeded only in getting booked when he made a meal of a tangle with Joel Matip in the Liverpool goal area. In all, this was a tasty encounter and one of the most entertaining matches between these two sides that I’ve seen in many a year. Tackles flying in from both sides as well as an audacious bit of skill from Diaz when he superbly controlled a long pass in the second half. This game had everything!
Ultimately, the fixture ended with Liverpool as deserved winners on the day. Everton now continue their fight against relegation under Lampard and – as things stand, they have their work cut out. Despite the rivalry, it would be a great shame for the city should the Blue Noses suffer relegation for the first time since 1951.
🔴 Derby day decided 🔴#LIVEVE pic.twitter.com/9ZdTVx3VSn
— Premier League (@premierleague) April 24, 2022
The Ugly
It’s not pretty but it seems Liverpool are victims their own success. The reds now have eight games in the next 25 days which doesn’t include the Champions League final. Just about a game every three days until the end of the season. That’s a hefty schedule in anyone’s book. The challenge in my opinion isn’t about winning games. Liverpool have the players to do that. It’s about keeping them all fit.
There has been a lot of talk about the team and an historic quadruple… should they manage to overturn Manchester City in the League, beat Chelsea in the FA Cup final and the winner of Manchester City and Real Madrid in the Champions League. A huge ask. Personally, I believe it’s too soon to talk about that. Should the boys be successful in the FA Cup final and complete a double that in itself would be worthy of praise. Right now, Manchester City don’t look as if they’re going to give up their title and we all know they’re well capable of breathtaking consistency.
Liverpool's final five Premier League fixtures compared to Man City after Everton winhttps://t.co/fHdnFAjjIl
— Liverpool FC News (@LivEchoLFC) April 24, 2022
At the end of the day, the Reds are still in the competitions and…, if you’re in it, you can win it!
YNWA
