BATTERED them 1-2.
No idea how well we played.
Mad this sport of ours, at times.
Quick things:
- First half, I was livid with our midfield. Couldn’t see what they were about, what they were doing. Felt all three of them looked just off, but felt the Wembley pitch — in terms of both how it was underfoot and the sheer size of it — wasn’t helping.
- Thought Spurs were alehouse. Really direct for reasons I couldn’t pinpoint. Who did they think they were turning round? Liverpool are not last season’s Liverpool. I understand escaping the press but there has to be better ways than that.
- Second half, I was delighted with our midfield. Loved everything, could see everything. James Milner tackles their lad, and tackles their lad, and tackles their lad.
But…
The thing is this.
I was not in the ground. There are things you can see better on television and things you see better in the ground. What your centre mids are doing is very much among that. Passing lanes are a thing and you can block them without pressuring the ball, intercepting or tackling. You can play well without being visible. That could have been happening first half.
I have no idea how well Liverpool played.
Our knowledge has limits, our emotions don’t. We feel the game. We feel the kicking of the ball, we feel Milner tackling their lad. We feel it, they feel it as they play and our opponents feel it. They feel the ball going out tamely for a throw in. They feel their shortcomings.
I have no idea how well Liverpool played.
But Tottenham were abject. It was a crumble of a performance. Liverpool should have scored four, five, six. Tottenham had lads not digging each other out, centre halves exposed and left for dead, midfielders missing.
Eric Dier was dreadful. Tottenham looked a mile away from the consistent point-grinding machine of the last four seasons. They looked a side at a crossroads, a side who have been well managed but where the manager can do little more. He needed his players to stand up and be counted.
The game was spiky for an hour. It was unpleasant and, while Spurs didn’t deserve to go in level at the break, did Liverpool deserve to lead? You tell me. All I could feel was what wasn’t right until Gini Wijnaldum nodded it back at goal.
Has he given it?
Has he?
Has he given it?
It is football’s record scratch of a question. Has he given it? Has he given it? He *has* given it. Mixmaster Mike letting loose the party, inviting the carnage. He has given it and The Reds in the ground, The Reds in Motel, the diaspora finds itself in excelsis deo. Finds itself beside itself. Knows what it means.
It means everything. It was a first goal game and it was a Liverpool goal that was given.
The second, if anything, scruffier but back to what we can’t know. There, in that second, we see Liverpool play well. We see Andy Robertson, we see Sadio Mane, we see quality. And while it is a dog’s dinner, we see Roberto Firmino convert from all the xG you will ever need. We see the facts. The facts were 0-2. The facts were undeniable and the feelings were irresistible.
Liverpool on the march. But I have no idea how well Liverpool played.
Until the close, the question wasn’t will Liverpool crumble? Instead it was, will Liverpool punish Spurs? Will they take them to the cleaners? Will they put them out of their misery?
Virgil van Dijk was majestic. Joe Gomez scrambled but survived; was fortunate, perhaps at key times, but excellent at others. This is the game when it becomes alehouse, the game in its essence. Some waves you ride and ride well.
Across the contest, Robertson was the game’s outstanding performer. He never dipped from his seven and extended towards his 10. He showed himself to be marvellous yet again, to be in the conversation about being the best in his position in the league. He was streets ahead of his opposite number in Danny Rose, a player who has often looked the part.
Firmino was the best he has been this season. He showed the best and battled through the game. He deserved his goal and didn’t deserve to come off the pitch bleeding from the eye. He was holding the ball brilliantly.
I have no idea how well Liverpool played.
The Liverpool manager kept going berserk. He will have all sorts to bollock great footballers about. Loads to go spare about. But loads to bounce off, loads to be proud of. Loads of courage and presumably organisation. But he will be talking about decision making and final ball. Final ball.
What do we know? Right now, only how it feels. Only that Liverpool scored two when they should have scored five. Only that they saw out the game after the late goal. Only that they deserve three points and Spurs deserve none. Only that in the blood and bone, Liverpool have 15 from 15 and they are determined to make it a joy to be alive this season. They want to make you feel.
I am out right now. We know this. I am out. Liverpool have won away at a top-six rival. This is what it is when they make it a joy to be alive.
Just don’t ask me how good they were.
Five down, 33 to go.
Battered them 1-2.
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Top of the league with 5 wins from 5 and still yet to fully click. And we will, it’s inevitable. It should easily have been 6 or 7 nil today. We were so wasteful in attack but we’ve no beaten Palace, Leicester and Spurs away without getting out of 3rd gear.
Mr Atkinson and everyone else at the Anfield Wrap keep up the superb writing and brilliant videos. I’m addicted to the Wrap. You’re my Van Dijk. Immense. YNWA
*now beaten
When that finishing touch becomes perfect and finally fires on all cylinders this team will be invincible. Keep forgetting they were playing away and against a top team. Great performance.
Any away win against a top6 side, regardless of how the win came about, is a massive massive statement.
We had 10 shots on target, oppsed to Spurs’ 3. These are stats we usually produce against the smaller clubs. The Reds were brilliant.
Big 3 points. All the better as our attacking play is still around a 4 out of 10. Agree on Robbo, absolutely in love with the man. He and Milner are brilliant.
One other note – people need to start making noise and call out just how bad Spurs have gotten as a team of simulators and divers. It is obviously something that is being taught/coached.
Klopp has said how difficult it is to win away at sides like this, and of course he’s right, but that just felt so easy.
We let them off the hook time and again. If we were just a bit sharper we’d have walked out of there having served them up. There were enough opportunities for us to have buried them and that in itself is something to be thrilled about. We were technically and tactically leagues above them today. Van Dijk and Gomez kept Kane so quiet he may as well have not played.
I am not running out of superlatives for James Milner, I actually have run out. They’re all gone.
Good game overall. Thank goodness Gini scored.
The only criticism is the indecision in the final 3rd. We could’ve scored loads, but the front three seem to be off the mark. I hope Klopp has a word with them as he didn’t look too happy.
Lamela scored a worldy IMO. Nothing special. These mugs usually do that like last season’s Wanyama’s goal. Other than that Spurs and Harry Claim can go do one.
It will be interesting to see who lines up against PSG.
What a joy to be alive!
Felt a real marker today, especially after the 1st 5 mins. They look petrified & rightly so. Up the magic reds. Enjoy you’re night Neil, I know I will X
Is it really this easy for us? Chucking away 5 or more opportunities at Wembley and still making Spurs look like Brighton. Are we going to put it all together Tuesday night at Anfield? I’m having to much fucking joy, if only the footy gods can see us through City I will stop having a wank on Sundays.
Just to say that when one team on the pitch is abject, it’s often because the other team on the pitch is much better.
Excellent piece. Excellent performance yesterday. To let those Londoners all frustrated as they didn’t get any touch to even a draw. (Actually they almost got, oops, but you know )
It will for sure click massively to the front three in near future. The very base and foundation is there: it’s intensively difficult to score against these boys. Keita is like he is playing some 70% or 60% of his potent and still looks great.
Defence wins you titles, leagues. And Pool is looking absolute business on that front. City et Chelsea both look vulnerable at the back in the way Pool doesn’t. Still too early to make any reasonable predictions but for sure this team looks fucking dangerous. Great start to this serie of challenging fixtures. Team showed it’s more than ready for that.
This has all the makings of a “Make Us Dream” sequel.