Post match: Liverpool v Salzburg (UCL 2/10/2019 8pm)

[fspencer]

Dear Bobby:

Happy birthday, señor.

Regards,

@Alright Now and some band wagon types

does the band wagon have a step ladder ?

 

[BostonMick]

it was the best of times, it was the worst of times, and then it was alright at the end

I figure that it's important to reference @Alright Now in as many posts as possible

 

[fspencer]

I figure that it's important to reference @Alright Now in as many posts as possible

referring @Scott Jones got boring . he just swore at us .


Amit quotes mr bean.

 

[Notasuperfan]

I think we need to rethink the strategy at the right side of our pitch. If TAA is caught far up, our RCM must have the recovery pace to cover TAA so that our RCB wouldn't be drawn out. I wouldn't be surprised to see Hendo get benched this weekend for either keita or AOC...

We would also need to rethink our very high line. It is offensively good as we see today in the first half but it drains a lot out of our midfielders and CBs. Would it be better to drop the line back by a few yards once we get a 2 goals lead???

 

[won it at-a-turk stadium]

Don't worry guys. Last time we blew a 3 goal lead in the group stages (albeit we won this time) of the Champions League and Napoli failed to win away at the 4th ranked team in the group, we went all the way to the final

But seriously, Red Bull Salzburg are one of the better outfits outside the top 5 leagues. They have a strategy and have big investment in youth and developing very good teams. Won the UEFA youth league a couple years ago and made the Europa semis. We'll have to be better in Austria

 

[fspencer]

Don't worry guys. Last time we blew a 3 goal lead in the group stages of the Champions League and Napoli failed to win away at the 4th ranked team in the group, we went all the way to the final

But seriously, Red Bull Salzburg are one of the better outfits outside the top 5 leagues. They have a strategy and have big investment in youth and developing very good teams. Won the UEFA youth league a couple years ago and made the Europa semis. We'll have to be better in Austria

of course they are a good side . they scored 6 in the first game ? got massive backing and sadio played for them . they are like monaco but just not like psg or city .

 

[Krimson]

Salzburg coach Jesse Marsch explains that his side's incredible comeback was eventually killed off by the power of Anfield: "When you come to Anfield you learn it’s not just the quality opponent, but the environment and the occasion at a stadium like this. It’s incredible."

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1179512776076734464

 

[Kopstar]

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1179507285711839232

 

[Neukolln]

Salzburg coach Jesse Marsch explains that his side's incredible comeback was eventually killed off by the power of Anfield: "When you come to Anfield you learn it’s not just the quality opponent, but the environment and the occasion at a stadium like this. It’s incredible."

https://twitter.com/i/web/status/1179512776076734464

I don't know him personally but I've heard Jesse Marsch is a really nice chap off the pitch. I like the way he manages his sides. He's an intense sort that players seem to love playing for.

 

[BostonMick]

I asked this in the ingame thread - asking again -
did it look like at one point in the first half that Robbo playing on the right and TAA on the left?

 

[hugo the horrible]

For a while there we looked liked we had regressed to a few years ago...no,not really!
But at 3-0 it seemed complacency set in and Salzburg showed us that they are a bloody good side..well managed and really put the shits up us.
But all was well in the end but reckon Klopp has been tearing some new ones about relaxing,so hopefully Rodgers and Leicester will wonder what hit them.

 

[Perth Red]

I asked this in the ingame thread - asking again -
did it look like at one point in the first half that Robbo playing on the right and TAA on the left?

Happened a bit during the Newcastle game. TAA taking corners on the left so Robbo going to the right. Takes a while for them to switch back if the ball is cleared. Not seen last night's game yet (4.30am on a work night) but could be the same

 

[JustHitMyHead]

Well.... It's great to get that wake up call in a game we actually go on to win.

It's little pieces of luck like this that will help us become champions.

 

[BostonMick]

Well.... It's great to get that wake up call in a game we actually go on to win.

It's little pieces of luck like this that will help us become champions.

Also tenacity
that was one of the things Klopp talked about during his second (maybe third) season
that the team had to work on not letting their heads drop when going behind or conceding or facing adversity
giving up three in a row and then coming back 9 minutes after the third to go 4-3 up - I'd say the lads showed some tenacity

 

[Alright Now]

Top post mate. We give up too many chances and the space behind the full backs (TAA in particular) that the centre halves have to cover is leaving us exposed.

Agreeance. And all of @Billy Biskix ’s posts are top ones. Must reads!

 

[1dragon]

A strong Salsburg team is good news for us. Napoli won't have it easy against them. Best result for us now would be for RBS to win both matches against Napoli, while we win both against Genk. This would put us on the verge of qualification for the knockout phase.

I hope Klopp changes something in midfield over the weekend. Gini or Henderson out for AOC or Keita. We seem to be over run too easily.

 

[jabu]

And yet, Jordan was the one who was putting in those good forward passes, though he had an off day with his defending. IF anyone is to sit out at hte weekend, it should have to be Gini. He seems to be in a middle of a three game rut, where he is middling through the games (his goal last match not withstanding).

Anyway, with Keita back in training, we now have a full compliment of midfielders, so Klopp can certainly mix and match at the weekend.

I would sit both gini and hendo to be honest. They both struggled badly tonight

 

[[email protected]]

...

We should, and could have made a major dent in Salzburg’s ability to get out of this group, now they are in a decent position with that performance and a escaped with most of their goal difference intact.

If teams are tied the Head to Head record vs each other is used to separate them. GD against each other does count in that head to head but only after points taken against each other first i.e. if we need a draw to remain level on points with them going into the last game then GD will not matter.

 

[The Elusive 19th]

Imho, the game plan must have been start the game intensely, get early goals, then go down to second gear, manage the game and win the game. After being 3 nill up, the guys must have started saving energy for weekend game. It usually happens, just that previously we used to get away with it, in this game we couldn't. Thank god we won the game still.
The guys need some rotation to refresh their minds and body so as to avoid fatigue down the business end of the season.

 

[Craig_Johnston]

I'm sorry, but once again people are talking about tiredness. The season isn't even two months in. What are they going to be like in March? The first team had a week off last week, so why are they tired now? It doesn't make any sense at all.

 

[Incognito]

I'm sorry, but once again people are talking about tiredness. The season isn't even two months in. What are they going to be like in March? The first team had a week off last week, so why are they tired now? It doesn't make any sense at all.

I'll use @Billy Biskix post when we were discussing tiredness as this happened last season as well, around the same time. And we finished off very strongly so don't think it's a right inference that our tiredness now will equate to us being worse towards the end of season. Also most of first team members have been playing before the season started, so it wasn't like they had a good two months rest.

I was going to make reference to the Huddersfield game too. We were hanging on then against one of the worst PL teams ever. Yesterday reminded me of the end of that game although Chelsea are obviously a much better team and were always going to cause us problems particularly with Kante back.

Tiredness was a factor yesterday in the second half, mainly in midfield which is why we started dropping off. Klopp rarely rotates much early on so it's completely normal. We have to get off to a good start so he's going to stick with his strongest players for the first few games. From now on we'll start seeing some mild rotation. Shaqiri, Gomez, Keita and so on coming in for the odd game here and there. In previous seasons we've hit top gear and fitness around about Christmas when the fixtures are at their most intensive, then there are the winter camps which seem designed to re-condition us for the second half of the season. I do think that the high line we are playing now contributes to the tiredness because it's a very intense way to play but that's probably a discussion for another thread.

 

[Quicksand]

It was like being transported back to the early days of Klopp's reign. Sublime attacking play, ridiculous defending when you can't even relax and enjoy the game at 3-0 up because you know there's a chance we might blow it.

I don't think it was complacency tonight. Maybe for their first because we had started to showboat a bit at 3 up but second half we came out with intent and had obviously had a kick up the backside from JK. Trouble was we had come up against a team that exposed our vulnerability in defence and we couldn't do anything about it. That vulnerability has been there since the first game of the season. In fact this was Norwich again only with better quality players in attacking positions who can take their chances.

Last season I don't remember VVD breaking sweat. Now he's forever pelting back towards his own goal trying to cover a 2 against 2 or 2 against 1. We're so high up. There's masses of space for the CBs to cover. It is an exhausting way to play football and I don't think it's sustainable over a whole season unless there's more rotation. Too many of our players looked goosed tonight and tired players make mistakes, like continually conceding possession in dangerous areas.

Thank god for Milner. I was desperate for him to come on and bring some order to it all because some heads were going out there at that point. Origi was also a good sub. We rode out the last 20 comfortably enough and at least we won. A couple of seasons ago we wouldn't have. A big three points against a dangerous team so job done, but there were some warning signs tonight.

That massive space is shrunk when Allison plays. Good as Adrian has been he is unable to cover what Allison does. His absence, combined with the higher line exposes the space. I imagine that tactic of utilising VAR on offsides was conceived before our keeper was injured. Also, Matip had bedded into a slightly newer system and Gomez looked rusty last night.
Regarding tiredness, well the squad isnt as expansive as Citys, so rest isnt a huge option.
The match on Saturday becomes huge again. Vardy produces a different challenge, his pace behind the line might mean Allison returns ahead of scheduled time.

 

[Walshy07]

Gomez seemed to be a bit to casual as he knows he's fast. He was better as game went on but for first hour was poor.
It didn't help it was probably VVDs worst game for us. He was due a shit one to be fair but it hurt us as Gomez wasn't on his game either.

 

[Hope in your heart]

Unfortunately, I couldn't watch the game live, but it seems to have been entertaining! An Anfield European Night special...

Retrospectively, the score and outcome isn't too suprising. We went into the game against a good attacking team with a rusty Gomez having to bed in, so it's not too surprising to have conceded goals. On the other hand, as I wrote in the pre-match thread, Salzburg aren't the best defensively, so to see them concede four goals at Anfield is normal service resumed for our lads, especially with our front three finding some form back. Especially Mané and Bobby seem to have performed very well, and Salah was there to finish off two chances.

The game will serve as a stark reminder for our lads not to rest on their laurels. They aren't still at 100% currently, and the sudden dip in their performance is probably due as much to this as to relaxing after the early 3-0, and thinking that the game was over. A good lesson for them, especially as they once again found a way to get back into the game again and score that all-important fourth goal, and hold out the result after that. Our teams with Rodgers or in the early times with Klopp wouldn't have be able to come back and would possibly have drawn or lost this game, so fair play to the players for actually winning that game. It was needed!

Finally, a compliment to Salzburg. It's no small feat to come to Anfield and pose such a threat. We might not have been at our best defensively, but it still needed a team willing to ask questions out of our rearguard, and by all accounts, they did that brilliantly. They are dangerous indeed (some brilliant young players), and our game at Salzburg is far from a foregone conclusion. On the other hand, they seem able to ask similar questions from Napoli, so it will be interesting to see how they do against them in the next two games. It could open up the group completely.

Goal of the match: Robbo's. Brilliant!!! The other ones weren't too shabby either!

 

[roydom]

Was hoping Bobby would get one...

Can't imagine what it would be like hearing Anfield erupt into a round of "Happy Birthday"...

Happened a few years ago for King Kenny when he was back in the dugout. Think it was against utd when Kuyt got a hat trick.

 

[Noo Noo]

Couldn't watch. Will grab highlights later.

Consider this: We've allowed just 5 goals against in 7 PL matches. These guys put 3 past us in 21 minutes at Anfield. What's the thesis? Is Matip that important? Were we just a bit leggy getting back defending?

Dont if you have a heart condition or high blood pressure.

 

[Iluvatar]

Couldn't watch. Will grab highlights later.

Consider this: We've allowed just 5 goals against in 7 PL matches. These guys put 3 past us in 21 minutes at Anfield. What's the thesis? Is Matip that important? Were we just a bit leggy getting back defending?

Klopp eluded to this in his post-match presser.

They moved to a 442 with a diamond in midfield which gave one of their players (I forget his name) license to drop in between Gomez/VVD and Fabinho. This meant Gomez kept moving out of the defensive line which made us massively disjointed at the back.

Combine that with our defence having a poor outing and a lot of complancency (too many flicks and over-complicated passing) leading to turn overs etc.

When we shifted to 4231 and Milner sat with Fabinho this nullied their formation changed and made us again on top. Poor of the players (and Klopp for taking so long) for not making better in-game shifts etc.

 

[Billy Biskix]

That massive space is shrunk when Allison plays. Good as Adrian has been he is unable to cover what Allison does. His absence, combined with the higher line exposes the space. I imagine that tactic of utilising VAR on offsides was conceived before our keeper was injured. Also, Matip had bedded into a slightly newer system and Gomez looked rusty last night.
Regarding tiredness, well the squad isnt as expansive as Citys, so rest isnt a huge option.
The match on Saturday becomes huge again. Vardy produces a different challenge, his pace behind the line might mean Allison returns ahead of scheduled time.

I made the point about rotation because the way we are playing this season is tiring, for both CBs but particularly for the midfielders. We are so high up that they have to keep pressure on the ball. If we relax at all and give quality players time they will just pick us off and exploit the spaces. If JK is going with Fabinho, Henderson and Gini every game and expects them to play like that then we're going to have to expect a drop off in intensity in the midfield occasionally and that leaves us exposed. If rest isn't an option then changing the way we are set up might be.

Our midfielders were goosed in that second half. It may be early season but they are doing a lot of chasing and last night they came up against a team that was at least as fit as we are. Probably the fittest team we'll face all season. We were overrun in that second half until the substitutions and the change of shape, at which point we looked like we had a semblance of control again.

Obviously we are brilliant and Klopp is a genius. I don't want to give the impression that the world is falling in on us because it isn't. I just think there is an inherent risk in the way we are playing this season which was exposed last night.

 

[XMarlin]

Happened a few years ago for King Kenny when he was back in the dugout. Think it was against utd when Kuyt got a hat trick.

Happened a few years ago for King Kenny when he was back in the dugout. Think it was against utd when Kuyt got a hat trick.

I seem to remember that. I think he was manager at the time...

Thanks for reminding me.

 

[EdWood]

I don't know him personally but I've heard Jesse Marsch is a really nice chap off the pitch. I like the way he manages his sides. He's an intense sort that players seem to love playing for.

Sounds just like another manager some of us may know........