The Season so Far – Zonal Marking

Slow start to the season, a host of injuries, advancing to the next round of the Champions League and the English Football League Cup – Liverpool’s first part of the season in a nutshell. Here’s the review of the defence, midfield and attack. Zonal Marking.

Goalkeeper and Defence

There’s no denying that Liverpool’s goal is in safe hands, regardless of who guards it. The more experienced goalie, Alisson Becker, has been getting the nod in the Premier League and Champions League.

He managed to keep four clean sheets in 14 domestic appearances, while on the European stage, he got three out of six possible to his name.

His younger team-mate Caoimhin Kelleher, who turns 24 in three days, is well-regarded by Jurgen Klopp, who has provided him with a game-time in the domestic League Cup. Make no mistake about it, the Irish shot-stopper steps up to the required level and does wonders.

Three saves produced in the penalty shoot-out against Derby County helped the Reds advance to the next round of the competition. Moreover, the German coach was quick to heap praise on Kelleher after that win, reiterating he believes the keeper to be the No. two in world football.

The backline has been rocky and inconsistent. Both Joe Gomez and Virgil Van Dijk have created one error leading to goal. The mistake scale could have been even higher but for Alisson’s saves pulled off. Joel Matip and Ibrahima Konate had the first part of the season to forget due to the injury issues.

The flying full-backs got off to a bad start. Trent Alexander-Arnold is yet to set-up a goal in the Premier League. In the previous season, he and Andy Robertson were competing in a friendly rivarly to find out which of them could contribute the most assists.

This time, their main focus will be to get back on the right track. Scouser Trent’s main task will be improving his defensive abilities. As for Robertson, his link-up play and the pitch understanding on the left-side with other forwards gets better and better.

Score: 3

Midfield

This area of the pitch was talked through at length in the summer’s off-season in terms of potential reinforcements. Initially, Jurgen Klopp played down the need of bringing a new face to the middle of the park, but in late August conceded that he made a mistake by not signing a midfield booster earlier in the transfer window.

In the wake of the injury crisis, and so many options depleted in this area, the German coach has bent over backwards to put things together. In fact, Liverpool weren’t the dominant force in midfield, therefore struggled to control proceedings, and opponents found it easy to bypass this zone.

The below par performances led Klopp to implement changes in the set-up. Throughout the season we could see a turn to 4-4-2 formation, but then again a throw-back to the 4-3-3 system that he had favoured for a couple of seasons.

Once fit, Thiago Alcantara adds extra quality to the middle. His technical skills make fans get up from the chair. Harvey Elliot, Curtis Jones, Stefan Bajcetic and Fabio Carvalho are extremely promising.

The struggling-for-form Fabinho is yet to find his feet in his favourite holding position, let’s hope he’ll deliver after the World Cup break. Jordan Henderson and James Milner were there when needed, but their displays haven’t been conspicuous.

Score: 2

Attack

Liverpool have fired home 28 goals in 14 appearances in the Premier League, and bagged 17 in six meetings in the Champions League. The scoring frequency is more than two per match. Undoubtedly, this stats have been boosted by an impressive 9-0 home victory over Bornemouth in the Premier League.

Roberto Firmino must be the revelation of the season so far. He rose like a phoenix from the flames and stepped up his game. Before the campaign, many expected him to leave the team in the summer 2023, when his contract would be due to expire.

However, with so many positive performances talks over his contract extension are ongoing. The Brazilian has delivered nine goals and registered four assists.

Mohamed Salah got off to a slow start. Having attempted 50 shots in the Premier League, just 20 of them were on target, but earned six goals under his belt at the end of the day.

The most concerning thing is that he’s missed 10 big chances. The Egyptian has set the bar high for himself in the previous seasons. The departure of Sadio Mane in the summer, brought about changes up front and Salah needed to adapt to them. If the No. 11 enhances his end product, the top four spot should be up for grabs.

It’s been a disappointing campaign for Diogo Jota, who’s missed 16 clashes due to the hamstring and calf issue. Luis Diaz is a player that can make a difference at the front, but again injuries forced him to spend time on the sidelines. When it comes to Darwin Nunez, Liverpool really do have a special talent on their hands.

Score: 3