Manchester City (a)

[Buzzo]

Great block from Matip it transpires. That pass from KDB is ridiculous.

[ame]https://twitter.com/tactical_times/status/1513460947637227522[/ame]

[danperkins]

Their midfield yesterday was outstanding, sublime technically & worked their bollox off pressing the life out of us. I read Thiago's stats there and they looked great on paper but I didn't think he played well, I was dissapointed he didn't influence the game more. Hendo was terrible plain and simple, he ran around like a headless chicken out of possession and struggled massively in possession in the tight spaces. Fab seemed to lose his head from minute one, all over the shop and covering spaces in that midfield that he didn't need to. Their midfield are so comfortable in possession that even when we pressed (we didn't do enough of imo) they can play in and through us. Not many teams can do that.

For me though, that ball over the top was the killer. We play a pretty successful high line and have adequate pace to implement that system but that position behind Trent & in between Trent/Matip is always the prime target area vs Liverpool. Any team with real pace up top seem to try target that area. Credit to City, they had that pace up top and played that ball over the top time and time again. They actually did exactly the same thing on Robbo/VVD side too & it was unusual to see that area also being targeted. Lovely balls over the top/diagonal and caught us out so many times. I was surprised Jesus started but it was a good shout from Pep and he gave Robbo a tough game.

We were lucky to come away with a point but I honestly thought we were poor all over the pitch but we still managed to score 2 goals, away from home in the toughest fixture in world football. IMO the occasion got the better of us, from the kick off we were panicked, sloppy and hurried in possession and that seemed to carry through for most of the game. We need to be perfect in the league, aswell as juggling the other fixtures in between. It's a massive ask to compete on all fronts and it is not something even as a successful side that we are used to doing. We need a bit of luck, it's still there but it's tough watching and waiting on City to slip up whilst trying to remain perfect ourselves in a chaotic fixture list. Great to be a LFC fan, we're in the mix and all this stress is part and parcel of challenging for the big trophies.

[Big-Red-Ed]

It was all about the midfield. Thiago I felt was good, Fabinho wasn't at his dominating best but Henderson was very poor. Too many times recently Hendo has had a mediocre game. Love the guy but no room for sentiment in this game

YNWA

[Irishnev]

Their midfield yesterday was outstanding, sublime technically & worked their bollox off pressing the life out of us. I read Thiago's stats there and they looked great on paper but I didn't think he played well, I was dissapointed he didn't influence the game more. Hendo was terrible plain and simple, he ran around like a headless chicken out of possession and struggled massively in possession in the tight spaces. Fab seemed to lose his head from minute one, all over the shop and covering spaces in that midfield that he didn't need to. Their midfield are so comfortable in possession that even when we pressed (we didn't do enough of imo) they can play in and through us. Not many teams can do that.

For me though, that ball over the top was the killer. We play a pretty successful high line and have adequate pace to implement that system but that position behind Trent & in between Trent/Matip is always the prime target area vs Liverpool. Any team with real pace up top seem to try target that area. Credit to City, they had that pace up top and played that ball over the top time and time again. They actually did exactly the same thing on Robbo/VVD side too & it was unusual to see that area also being targeted. Lovely balls over the top/diagonal and caught us out so many times. I was surprised Jesus started but it was a good shout from Pep and he gave Robbo a tough game.

We were lucky to come away with a point but I honestly thought we were poor all over the pitch but we still managed to score 2 goals, away from home in the toughest fixture in world football. IMO the occasion got the better of us, from the kick off we were panicked, sloppy and hurried in possession and that seemed to carry through for most of the game. We need to be perfect in the league, aswell as juggling the other fixtures in between. It's a massive ask to compete on all fronts and it is not something even as a successful side that we are used to doing. We need a bit of luck, it's still there but it's tough watching and waiting on City to slip up whilst trying to remain perfect ourselves in a chaotic fixture list. Great to be a LFC fan, we're in the mix and all this stress is part and parcel of challenging for the big trophies.

A lot there I agree with but the biggest take away is that a few of our players shat the bed - the occasion got to them. It might be that they regret that result more than us because they played arguably as well as they could and we were miles off…….yet we drew

[Rich]

It was all about the midfield. Thiago I felt was good, Fabinho wasn't at his dominating best but Henderson was very poor. Too many times recently Hendo has had a mediocre game. Love the guy but no room for sentiment in this game

YNWA

They managed to expose Fab's lack of pace.

Fair play I thought City were excellent yesterday - and we did really well in pegging them back.

[Doc_Piptorious]

They managed to expose Fab's lack of pace.

Fair play I thought City were excellent yesterday - and we did really well in pegging them back.

He is not lacking in pace though. He is not a speed king but would rate him as having mid level pace.

Think what they did expose was his inability to be in two places at the same time and they created that dilemma for him time after time.

For me they targeted Henderson's lack of mobility/recovery pace and his increasing tendancy to drift towards the ball leaving gaps.

It was the perfect storm imo of the City players playing really well and some of our guys giving top class players even more room to operate in.

Totally agree as well about it being a good result for us. Them playing so well at home and still not making any gains on us.

[Fierce]

It was all about the midfield. Thiago I felt was good, Fabinho wasn't at his dominating best but Henderson was very poor. Too many times recently Hendo has had a mediocre game. Love the guy but no room for sentiment in this game

YNWA

Fullbacks for me Clive. Seemed like they both spent most of the game sprinting back into position or chasing another ball that bypassed them. It's the way we play, and against every other team in the league it works, but it was clear from kick off that City were exploiting it as a weakness

In a way it's exciting that we stick to our gameplan, but perhaps a wee bit arrogant too

[dizzycat]

Hendos positioning was all wrong first half and I think you are right, it negated the full backs as an attacking force. Fab having a rare mediocre game compounded the issue. They effectively had two extra players in an area with plenty of space to move the ball. A draw means we are still well in the race with a decent chance of winning it.

[Paul12]

I think that, whilst we can criticise the performances of individual players, there is a bigger issue here. It is an issue that has persisted for a couple of years now and we need to find a solution.

It is that teams like Man City and (when on form) Chelsea don't find it uncomfortable playing against us, but we find it uncomfortable playing against them. We have not lost to any of them this season, but (if we ignore penalties and periods when the opposition were down to 10-men) we also haven't won - and, frankly, we have been in all those games (apart maybe the 2-2 game with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge) a bit lucky to get away with a draw. Man City thrashed us (goal scoring apart) in both first halves.

I fear our system is not right for those teams. (Maybe it is tiny adjustments here and there, or maybe it is something bigger.) Almost as big an issue is that I think the players KNOW it is not right, and as a result play very anxiously in these games.

[Doc_Piptorious]

I think that, whilst we can criticise the performances of individual players, there is a bigger issue here. It is an issue that has persisted for a couple of years now and we need to find a solution.

It is that teams like Man City and (when on form) Chelsea don't find it uncomfortable playing against us, but we find it uncomfortable playing against them. We have not lost to any of them this season, but (if we ignore penalties and periods when the opposition were down to 10-men) we also haven't won - and, frankly, we have been in all those games (apart maybe the 2-2 game with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge) a bit lucky to get away with a draw. Man City thrashed us (goal scoring apart) in both first halves.

I fear our system is not right for those teams. (Maybe it is tiny adjustments here and there, or maybe it is something bigger.) Almost as big an issue is that I think the players KNOW it is not right, and as a result play very anxiously in these games.

Think it is more a case of two near equal teams meeting and one getting on top more than the other.

Do think that there is a physicality issue starting to emerge though.

If you look at Chelsea best XI, City's best XI and our best XI, then it is in the middle where the biggest differences are when going head to head.


We all press, we all have players in the middle that are excellent with the ball at their feet (think we might actually shade that one), however when going head to head they (especially City) have midfielders that are that bit more mobile, have that bit more pace and maybe that are a bit less worn, that bit younger with more lie in their legs.

Combine that bit of extra pace/mobility/energy with a close to equal levels of technique and drive, and that difference in physicality could well be what tips things in favour of the other team when all other things are close to equal.

Put us in with a team that can only match us on one side of things and we will kill them with the other, but against the likes of City who can match us in terms of technique, drive and will to win, then that edge in physicality is the difference maker for me.

Think it is no suprise that a lot of the midfielders we are being liked to have high end physical qualities as well as being technically good.

Sanchez, Tchouameni, Bellingham etc. All are good on the ball, all pass well and look like they can fit into a number of tactical set ups, but they all are quick, mobile, aggressive and seem to relish going head to head in physical battles as much as going pass for pass. Other guys we have been linked with, like Nkunku, ticks the physical boxes along with the skill ones.

[Shaggy]

Love this pic

[Doc_Piptorious]

You lost weight fella? Almost did not recognise you giving the ****** gesture on the bottom right.

[rudedog]

I think that, whilst we can criticise the performances of individual players, there is a bigger issue here. It is an issue that has persisted for a couple of years now and we need to find a solution.

It is that teams like Man City and (when on form) Chelsea don't find it uncomfortable playing against us, but we find it uncomfortable playing against them. We have not lost to any of them this season, but (if we ignore penalties and periods when the opposition were down to 10-men) we also haven't won - and, frankly, we have been in all those games (apart maybe the 2-2 game with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge) a bit lucky to get away with a draw. Man City thrashed us (goal scoring apart) in both first halves.

I fear our system is not right for those teams. (Maybe it is tiny adjustments here and there, or maybe it is something bigger.) Almost as big an issue is that I think the players KNOW it is not right, and as a result play very anxiously in these games.

No way did Man City not find that uncomfortable - that was them at their best and they still conceded 2 and were lucky not to concede another (from either Jotas shot straight at the keeper or Salahs getting deflected just wide)

Yes they had even more chances which they spurned but that’s probably one of their biggest issues, not being clinical enough.

[Rigadon]

I think that, whilst we can criticise the performances of individual players, there is a bigger issue here. It is an issue that has persisted for a couple of years now and we need to find a solution.

It is that teams like Man City and (when on form) Chelsea don't find it uncomfortable playing against us, but we find it uncomfortable playing against them. We have not lost to any of them this season, but (if we ignore penalties and periods when the opposition were down to 10-men) we also haven't won - and, frankly, we have been in all those games (apart maybe the 2-2 game with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge) a bit lucky to get away with a draw. Man City thrashed us (goal scoring apart) in both first halves.

I fear our system is not right for those teams. (Maybe it is tiny adjustments here and there, or maybe it is something bigger.) Almost as big an issue is that I think the players KNOW it is not right, and as a result play very anxiously in these games.

Good post Been thinking this for a while. We tend to be quite rigid with 4-3-3 (although this season we have changed, mid game, to 4-4-2 and 4-1-4-1). I'm sure Klopp and Lijnders will learn from the City and Chelsea games and look at ways we can improve. Be interesting to see what we do on Saturday.

[Doc_Piptorious]

Good post Been thinking this for a while. We tend to be quite rigid with 4-3-3 (although this season we have changed, mid game, to 4-4-2 and 4-1-4-1). I'm sure Klopp and Lijnders will learn from the City and Chelsea games and look at ways we can improve. Be interesting to see what we do on Saturday.

4-3-3 but with Keita in for Henderson and Diaz starting on the left and Mane in the middle.

Though I sort of wonder if we might see Bobby start and see him drop deep to counter Cancelo coming in.

Think I prefer the option of plugging a few of the gaps we had yesterday but making the sort of changes that give City more to think about rather than us thinking about changing what we know to counter them. Just feel that would be playing to their strengths a bit in trying to micro mange too much in case they do X and they do Y.