A NEW(ish) one, this, taking 10 talking point from yesterday’s game. We asked TAW contributors to message us on the final whistle as Liverpool outrun, out-thought and out-scored Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. This is what we got back:
1. A Positive From Mr Negative
I’m a miserable bastard. I make no bones about it. My glass is neither half full nor half empty. It’s smashed in a million pieces all over the kitchen floor. I hate hearing talk of titles on the back of one good performance. Been let down too many times to fall for that again. Just win the next game, that’s all I’m interested in. But…
There’s something going on here. Something that fits. Something that can grow and grow and take us with it. A team of players who want to work for each other, win for each other. No idea what’s going to happen but right now, with Arsenal, Chelsea and Leicester defeated (not just beaten, but defeated — there’s a difference), and with a team building its identity by the week, it feels big.
Go on from here. Make every game a statement of intent. Have these, Reds. We’re coming up the hill. Something’s burning…. @66zimbo
2. Good Evans!
3. And Here’s To You, Jordan Henderson
Feels like Henderson needed that goal- was great against Leicester but that miss in the 2nd half will have annoyed him. What a belter, should silence some critics. @_lfcjoel
4. Dutching The Void
Thought Wijnaldum was outstanding in and out of possession- looks comfortable in this midfield role. Showed a steely side to our game to dig in and grind out the win in the end. No one will want to play us at the moment. @_lfcjoel
Wijnaldum is starting to look like a proper Liverpool player. Uses the ball intelligently and doesn’t seem to give it away cheaply. Strong physically, fast and pushes us forward while carrying the ball. @NeilDocking
The Wij was fantastic. Had it not been for Hendo’s goal he’d have been my MOTM. @whichdave
5. Sky Sports Ruse
6. More Faces Than A Town Hall Clock
7. With Stand, We’d Have Delivered
8. Then I Saw Their Face, Now I’m A Believer
9. Tiger Feat
Genuinely think that next week will tell us a huge amount about this team. Go out and batter a side like Hull who will be sitting deep and we’ll have to be taken more seriously in the conversation about the title. Adam_Smith_82
10. Together Everyone Achieves More
Massive win that!! In recent seasons I think we come away with at best a draw there. Unbelievable fight and togetherness amongst the team for the last 30 minutes. Brilliant. The team is the star. @dpvdecorators
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was it just me that thought their pitch looked slow last night ,like they had deliberately not watered it ?
Love this new feature, lads.
I think that is the first time since Roman arrived I’ve actually expected us to win at Chelsea.
If live is in fact a great adventure or nothing we are surely following the right team.
Been confident all week we would win there , the confidence is overflowing, the passing is barca like and all look supremely comfortable receiving the ball in any situation, Romans Chelski looked terrified on their own patch , as for SkyUTD messes Tyler and rat boy disgust me in their bias and openly will any team we are playing to score
Sky Sports commentary for the game was very tired. Tyler and Neville were both pitching for a 3-2 to Chelsea. A bit predictable from them. Sky seem to be overplaying Neville against Liverpool. Bring back commentators who bring a touch of neutrality. Commentators who don’t have an agenda.
Spot on Dave,
You could feel the fume even though in fairness Neville was calling it that Liverpool bossed the first 45.
well said. I am fed up with these two cronies. If Pogba hadda hit Hendos goal it would hv been screamed about for days. watching skymancnews u wouldn’t think we played at all, no wait more negatives around can we keep running like this? mmmm
Two things that I wouldn’t mind reassurance on:
a. Why is Karius definitely / necessarily going to be fast-tracked into keeper?
Sure, Simon is poor with his feet, but he is a decent (6-8th place EPL)
keeper. Is Karius going to be better? Yes, he has had 100+ appearances
in Germany, but that doesn’t always transfer from league to league.
I hope I’m completely wrong, but everyone is *so* sure about how good he is going
to be, but I haven’t seen anything yet to tell me he is a 1-5th EPL level keeper.
I guess we’ll all find out soon enough. Any ideas?
We’ve had a great start against the big sides. And as usual our difficulty will be raising
our game/physicality for Watford/Stoke/W.Brom. A lot of our fanbase are more confident
that this will happen this season ie that we’ll be better against these sides. I hope so, but it
will not be easy. Anyone see Utd against Watford today will testify to this. Maybe they we ‘leggy’ but it was pretty clear. The way the £££ is divided after successive TV deals means these
less glamorous teams are competing on an equal footing with teams like us now for signings.
I think its going to be really hard for us. Burnley was a perfect example. Please tell me I’m worrying over nothing and that we’ll smash these sides that we really struggled with as recently as the last 8 games of last season (EL run aside).
Cheers for reading.
Hi Donncha, I am with you on the apprehension of how things are starting to look like with the teams outside the usual top 6-8 EPL teams. We as fans often get too ahead of ourselves when we go on a trot of some wins or good performance by one or two players on the day.
No doubt we played well against Chelsea, showing determination, grit and pace, and we contained the trio (hazard, Costa and Willian) better than prior times when we have met. Sure the goal could have been prevented, but give them credit for not collapsing, and Mignolet for not pulling silly stunts.
I have hope and optimism about Karius not because of his Bundesliga days, but that maybe Klopp has a plan for him on how to develop within the team when he is not playing regularly. He will make mistakes too like De Gea or other goalkeepers but he also needs game time in case we lose Mignolet.
As for teams encroaching on the top positions due to new tv deal money, etc, well unless they are geniuses at rotating their sides as in the EPL and FA Cup matches that they too need to play out before the upcoming weekend, then we might be in for it.
Not to say that they will not be up for a fight, you are right and we should not underestimate them. But I have started to focus on only one match at a time, as I’ve tired of always trying to worry about games and teams two three weeks beyond the next.
TAW wrote something about why Liverpool FC might have not been able to win the league since the glory days, and that is Reds and maybe fans alike always thinking about games after the upcoming one.
So take heart Donncha, and Llet’s see how we do on Tuesday. That’s all we should focus on right now. We may not smash them, but we will focus on doing our best to beat them and move on to the next game.
Never mind the other teams, as they may do well or may not, like United today – though playing in the Europa does have some effect on energy and effort. I watched the game, and though that Maureen should have setup a little differently – their arrogance showing perhaps.
I hope Jurgen and the Red Men keep it real and get their heads out of the clouds, as we should do to keep that Red Machine in full effect!
Up the Reds!!!
I must agree that we have to beat so-called “weaker” teams such as Burnley if we are to be in contention at the end of the season. Who would have predicted 10 pts from our opening five games given the strength of four of our opponents? Well, Liverpool are always (nearly always) capable of raising their game when the opponent is highly ranked by the media but as we all know we are capable of no shows, and blue funks when the opponent is underrated. We have all had the experience if we engage in any competitive game. Its natural. When you get the notion that you only have to show up to win you might as well not show up at all. Considering this truth, maybe the loss to Burnley, coming at the outset of the season might prove to be a good thing. If Klopp is as as good a motivator as he seems and as accomplished a psychologist as he has demonstrated with Sturridge, Hendo, Milner, Lovren and such then I expect him to prepare his team to be ready for such lapses in future. Maybe, and this is my hope, he will be ready with a team that just wants to have fun – fun being the feeling of out-playing and out-scoring every team comprehensively even those in the bottom half of the table. For those are usually the ones who have undone us in the past. In Klopp we trust.
All we need to think about right now is, “in klopp we believe”. Period!