Liverpool are possibly the only Premier League team who can beat the league leaders one week, and then lose to the side in last place the next week.
Jurgen Klopp’s team blew Manchester City away at Anfield last Sunday, racing into a 4-1 lead, before holding on to win 4-3. They’re the only side to record a victory over City in the league this season, and possibly the only team capable of causing them such trouble.
Yet, that win may now count for little in the long-run this season after falling to a 1-0 defeat against Swansea City on Monday night.
Liverpool had 72 percent possession, 21 shots and the world’s most expensive defender, but Alfie Mawson’s goal was enough to give the home side a potentially priceless victory. The presence of Virgil van Dijk also wasn’t enough to prevent Klopp’s side conceding from a corner. It turns out, one player alone isn’t enough to solve Liverpool’s defensive issues, as Jamie Carragher said on Sky Sports following the match.
“It’s poor from Virgil van Dijk, in some ways, he shouldn’t have gone for it,” he said on Monday Night Football. “This thing about Van Dijk is going to come in and fix this problem, it is absolute nonsense. That one player comes in and fixes the whole problem, he’s not that good.”
When Liverpool concede from a corner, with a £75m defender in the team, the focus will inevitably be on their apparent shortcomings at the back. However, on the evidence of Monday’s match, it could be argued there is a more pressing problem position in the team than the defence. (And no, not just the goalkeeper position, because neither Loris Karius or Simon Mignolet are long-term options as the starting ‘keeper. Particularly Karius, who manages to make Mignolet seem like David de Gea).
Liverpool’s midfield of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Emre Can and Georginio Wijnaldum lacked any incision, and plodded their way through the match. All three played very well in the victory over City last week, but they spent most of the match without the ball. When asked to take the initiative, and break down an opposition sitting deep, they were ponderous and incapable of playing a pass that might unlock Swansea. In the second-half, Van Dijk and Joel Matip, Liverpool’s central defenders, became de-facto midfielders. They pushed up into Swansea’s half, and took turns fizzing the ball into Roberto Firmino, Mohamed Salah or Danny Ings when he came on.
Van Dijk had 20 passes into the final third, and Matip had 22 passes into the final third. Emre Can had 16 passes into the final third, Wijnaldum had seven passes into the final third and Oxlade-Chamberlain had just three. Liverpool’s attempts to find a way through Swansea’s low-block came from their two central defenders, rather than their three midfielders. Klopp effectively had three players doing the job of one midfielder. The lack of incision from Can, Wijnaldum and Oxlade-Chamberlain was really exposed against Swansea, as was the absence of Philippe Coutinho.
Kevin De Bruyne and David Silva have shown on countless occasions this season that it can take an elite, creative midfielder to open-up a packed defence. Liverpool lost such a player to Barcelona, and their midfield trio on Monday night certainly aren’t on that level. They’re capable of knocking down a door, as they did when they overwhelmed City last week, but can’t pick a lock.
It’s possible Naby Keita could solve this problem when he joins in the summer, but the midfield’s lack of incision is something Klopp really needs to address. However, whether the Liverpool manager is prepared to adapt his approach, and sign a player with craft rather than athleticism, remains to be seen.
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