WHERE on earth do you start with that? A reasonable start saw a Liverpool lead before another corner saw an equaliser. Liverpool’s reaction to going 1-1 was pathetic. All the negative words that are thrown at this team looked justified.
But the reaction to 4-4 is immense. Lots happens in between, of course, but I’ll leave the details of that to Neil here. But at 4-4 they could have settled, or collapsed. But they threw everyone forward and won it. Hope they enjoyed the celebration. Hope they remember how it feels. More of that reds.
Simon Mignolet: 4
Caught a couple, but every shot on target is a goal. So we might as well find a basketball player who can jump.
Nathaniel Clyne: 5
Had a couple of goes at their full back before realising he was rapid. Generally the problems were down the other side.
Alberto Moreno: 4
He’s such a dope. Too often out of position and reckless diving in. Some nice bursts forward, but hard not to just think of the negatives.
Kolo Toure: 5
Didn’t do a great deal wrong, but you wonder if he has the energy to dominate any more. And someone has to.
Mamadou Sakho: 4
Needs to be more front foot for the first and the fourth. Don’t think his positioning is great for the third either. He’s good one on one, but we need more than that at the moment.
Lucas Leiva: 5
No big negative moments, but he looks too slow to cope with an end-to-end game Especially in that midfield. Slow to react to the second
Emre Can: 5
Doesn’t even try to track Naismith for the second. You feel he’s not quite as good as he is in his head. Still needs to do the dirty work.
Jordan Henderson: 6
Quiet really, but a couple of points for a good finish at an important time.
Jordon Ibe: 5
Dangerous early on, but drifted out of it and looks no closer to that league goal.
James Milner: 6
Funny performance. Started well, winning a couple of good tackles and gets a nice assist. Then his head seemed to go after his failed one-on-one and he looked a bit lethargic. But nice finish for the fourth.
Roberto Firmino: 8
Must wonder what on earth is going on. But did his job and then some. Keep him high.
SUBS
Adam Lallana: 8
Terrific. Changed the game when he came on, not just with his quality but his energy, too. Seemed to remind everyone we are meant to press. And then gets the winner. Still probably not the long-term solution. But we can be heroes, just for one day.
Christian Benteke: 5
Ran some nice channels for the team. A nuisance for the winner, too.
Steven Caulker: 5
Will be disappointed after being thrown on as an extra centre half that he couldn’t help us more from another set piece. But then he’s involved at the other end for the winner. Maybe he is a centre forward after all.
The received wisdom on Mignolet is getting really tiresome now. He hasn’t been at fault for a goal for a while now. Find a better scapegoat
He’s fucking crap and we won’t win the league/become a competitive latter stages champions league team with him as our no. 1. It doesn’t get any more cut and dry than that for me tbh. Mignolet on his best day is not and never will be elite so he’s not cutting it. End of.
I wouldn’t immediately get rid when there’s the work to find a proper suitable Liverpool goalkeeper but then again I wouldn’t offer him better wages on a 5 year deal either.
They say he’s a great shot-stopper? WTF He couldn’t stop a bus to melwood if he tried.
“Simon Mingolet is an excellent shot stopper” ought never be uttered again… Otherwise, I think the ratings are on point, particularly since in reality, both teams should have lost. Naismith, still a useless punk thug.
Spot on, John, about our keeper with “the most clean sheets ~ when no shots on goal” :)
Time for Ward to start, along with Smith, Flenno, Lovren and one more.
Positives though:
~ 3 points
~ 5 goals (we actually scored 5 without a Number 9 :)
~ Lallana’s assist and goal.
~ Fighting spirit…
~ and Klopp..
Shane Long and then Charlie Austin tortured the Mancs today. That is 4 million Charlie Austin. We have 32 million Benteke. Someone please tell me how that happened.
I don’t know, but I consider Charlie Austin to owe me £170 the wanker!
Betting on the mancs? You deserve it!
10 for Lallana, surely? Just for the celebration.
Spot on with that Gibbo – where do we start with the keeper? 5 years? joke.
Great character to come back, we looked dead and buried. Thought Lallana was terrific when he came on. Albie Moreno needs a rest, as does Kolo. Be interesting what Jurgen does for the league cup semi in the week, surely Brad Smith plays (he was really good when on loan down here in Swindon last season, great pace but final ball a bit inconsistent) along with Caulker. Danny Ward in goal?
Get on Jurgen when the 5th goes in, he’s cool. His comments post match to BBC and BT sport about our set piece defending must mean changes are coming, if not now then end of the season.
Up the Reds
Very generous for Can. He was awful today especially for the 2nd goal. I usually love him but today was a bad bad day at the office for him. I’m fed up talking about our defense and keeper awful the lot of them!
Agreed. It boggles the mind that anyone could give Lucas and Can the same rating (5) and Milner a higher rating.
“No big negative moments, but he looks too slow to cope with an end-to-end game Especially in that midfield. Slow to react to the second.”
The preceding makes me doubt whether the author took a break from watching and switched to Braille.
Firmino was boss and Lallana gets an eleven from me,
boss daft win, boss daft goal, boss daft boss, boss daft celebrations
Footy for the footy mad masses,
Come on red men !
Hang on John,
Adam is at least a 9. He done everything right once he was brought on and what a celebration…..come on, lets live and regain these moments again. This is pure Klopp. Half that team will not be there next season but in the same breath the new players will take us on.
I’m just about done with Alberto Moreno. HAS NO BRAINS at all.
What on earth was he doing with those two tackles back to back. The second one was completely unnecessary with Sakho right there.
Does my head in!!
Harsh on Emre I think
Harsh on Emre? What was he doing for that second goal? Stood and watched (along with Lucas) as Naismith ran onto that ball. He is often guilty of ball watching. Needs to improve as he has the makings of a top class player.
Crazy game ,and a crazy win.
But surely this is not what Klopp ,and us fans expect from such a fixture.
Even though we took the lead I thought we looked placid from the kick off.
Don’t get me wrong – 4-5 wins are amazing , but i long for a CONTROLLED 2 nill win sometimes soon please reds.
Generally terrible performances but highly entertaining if you don’t think too much. Firmino has almost put a suarez shift in today… Don’t think he will ever be as good but he seems to have the calm to carry on playing when all those around are loosing it. Mignolet.. The defence was terrible but how has he failed to get near any of those goals. Does he have some kind of delayed reaction thing going on?
You’d need Mr Tickle in goal to save any of their goals. They were all hit well, Mignolet had no chance. Although, if he was truly world class, he might have kept one of them out. I guess that’s the difference between Hart/De Gea and Mignolet.
His command of the area is non-existent, his kicking is feeble, his distribution by hand seems nervous and often risky, and he is starting to be beaten by shots a title-winning keeper would save e.g. Naismith’s. Cech, Lloris, De Gea, Hart and Courtois (probably) are all in the elite category. Mignolet isn’t. Our aim is to win the title. We will. Under Klopp. But Mignolet won’t be in goal when we do.
Presumably Danny Wards 10 games in Scotland haven’t made him one of the elite either, and we won’t be able to buy any of those other keepers that were mentioned. So he’s probably our best option at the moment, given our relative position in the league recently.
Just seems like a waste of a fume when people are constantly having a go at Mignolet, when there are other issues that are more important, and when there’s no immediate resolution available. If Can sticks with Naismith, he doesn’t even get his shot off (thanks MOTD)
Think of it this way, we will (hopefully) buy a world class keeper (if there’s one available) in Summer, and all we’ve done is tie down the best no.2 keeper available, for the next five years.
Not really a fume. More a resigned observation based on many hours watching him. Agree that we will probably buy a replacement in the summer rather than January but there’s nothing wrong with hoping! Ward’s young and will take a few seasons to mature but I hope Klopp gives him some meaningful game time. I have high hopes based on admittedly little evidence. By the way, I think the 5 year deal for Mignolet is to protect his resale value. He won’t stay to be a No. 2 and why should he?
I have generally not been on the anti mignolet band wagon as the defence is often so poor at clearing the ball etc… But I don’t think he even got a glove to these goals and that’s kind of worrying as they were not all unstoppable as some reports suggest.
Get Casper Schmeicil (spelling?)
We need a boss in goal and a boss in central defence. I can’t see one in this set of players, absentees included.
“Liverpool have conceded from their first shot on target faced in all four of their Premier League games in 2016″….BBC
Nuff said.
This column is almost my favourite thing on earth! Apart from a reds win! Dont even care that we were mostly crap!! UP THE REDS! Ps. Surely its time for smith to get a start over moreno
agree !
How much do you reckon Moreno won on the when will a pen be awarded sweepstake? Only reason I can think of as to why he just pushed Naismith over so obviously
To be fair, Naismith shouldn’t have been on the park. Awful, awful challenge on Lucas in the fourth minute. Ankle breaker.
Agree – it wa sa shocking tackle. Not been mentioned much either.
Naismith felt a touch and threw himself to the floor. No disrespect to him, most would have done it. No doubt Gubbins would have ejaculated at that point, overjoyed at the thought her could slag the Spaniard again. A 5-4 win and only two players get rated above 6, yet neither of those got a 10?
Pretty fuckin’ amazing when you think about it. Maybe Gubbins here should start rating the opposition as well, to help explain just how a team with so many shit/moribund/average players can win at all.
No, really, I’m serious. How can a team with just two players rating above a six score five goals and win? It isn’t possible unless at least six/seven of the opposition rate a three or less.
Why don’t you stop pretending to be a football pundit and go do something you’re good at, if you can find something.
Why bother read the ratings & comment when the whole venture seems to antagonise you so much Jason?
Your buddy was pathetic yesterday in the penalty incident,
Got away for a ridiculous wrong side jump/slide tackle and he then looks that gift horse in the mouth by nudging Naismith in the back?
Moreno has lots of qualities but you’d be worried he’s never going to mature into a top full back,
Shame, he has all the tools.
It isn’t just Moreno, though he seems to be Gubbins’ favourite target to kick. Fair enough if the ratings are supposed to be an invitation to a discussion, but if he is just slating players to generate a reaction he shouldn’t be writing on a serious site.
I don’t think he is doing that. I just happen to think that Gubbins here isn’t very good. He isn’t much of a writer and isn’t much of a judge of footballers – he’s the kind of goose who would have given Kenny or Rush a ‘5-needs to work harder’ – (got a job thanks to his old man?) and it shouldn’t be a crime to say so.
Anyways, he wanted a reaction, he got one. Job done.
Get a grip, mate, and go back to reading the Beano.
The writer puts in the effort to post these ratings immediately after a match like that when most of us would be on our 10th pint.
I give you a – 10 for being the most miserable get on here.
harsh
Looked that way didn’t it.
was thinking the same…about sweepstakes
Dear me Jase,
John’s match ratings are an invite for discussion, they’re only an opinion.
Your reaction is way too extreme.
If you disagree then point out reasons why, don’t get personal.
5 goals or not Liverpool were very poor for much of the game and Norwich really shouldn’t have been gifted their first 3 goals.
Worth mentioning that Sakho has not been right since he came back from injury. He is still an excellent CB in my opinion and I think the defense looks best with Sakho and Lovren healthy.
If ever a player needed a Carra to show them what’s what, it’s Alberto fucking Moreno.
Always many a shortcoming watching Liverpool but wasn’t that ninth just sweet joy, relief and when was the last time we punched the air shouting “fucking get in there!!!”?
Too many negatives in that game to mention but God it made my day. As mentioned before Gibbo’s ratings are just one mans opinion; I’m not bothered about it but I wouldn’t to stick my neck just to collar a tonne of abuse from some bad knob heads!
This guy is crazy. Giving out ratings for footballers. What is he just making them up or something?