NINETY minutes of sheer hell, John Barnes said years ago.
The words echoed through today. Liverpool 0 Manchester City 0. Unbelievable we pay good money to be made to feel like that.
If it wasn’t hell it was purgatory. The prospect of losing loomed large, the stick bigger and more powerful than the carrot for both sides, and that dominated the whole contest. For Manchester City’s 100-point heroes, it was a trial to get through. Could they see off Liverpool? Could they see off the cauldron, the eye of the storm? This was to be an examination and they can feel like they passed. Aymeric Laporte was particularly excellent but their wonderful, clever manager can look his players in the eye tonight and feel like he has helped them and they have shown him something new.
They turned up like Brighton or like Leicester away, taking significant risks to stop Liverpool’s passing shapes from working. The football from neither side was cowardly, indeed to play as both did takes an awful lot of bravery and even more trust. Out of possession, you have to take up odd positions and hope your teammates have done the same. In possession, you have to play an awful lot of passes along a tightrope just to get out.
The first half was just that. Two sides trying to get out, having to work hard as anything just to get to halfway and have a breather. Everything you can normally rely upon gone, because Bernardo Silva stands just there, and Gini Wijnaldum just there, and now you can’t see anyone. Let no one say these aren’t serious football teams. There were no jokes on show, no flourishes. There were brains, bravery and brawn.
It was astonishing to see them time waste, dawdle over every restart and take time out of the game. They stole yards from throw ins during what would normally be a comic three minutes during the first half, but throw ins like everything else became too serious to laugh about. They mattered and they took up time and time was on everybody’s mind, going by so slowly.
It was unbelievable when it was 58 minutes on the clock. More than enough football had been played but there was to be over 30 minutes more. Football does things to time and scientists should look into it. Repeatedly Ederson Moraes was Ben Foster, no goalkick could handle enough contemplation, the ball spotted and respotted.
The City players loved a row, nothing takes time out of the game like a good row, whereas Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson kept up an ongoing conversation with the official. He could have given us more but he was right to give the penalty, one of the few breaks in the attrition, though wrong not to give us a freekick on halfway in the buildup. It was a game of marginal decisions, marginal positioning, marginal passing. That he perhaps struggled shows that neither side rose above him. He was not to become irrelevant.
The second half saw Liverpool shade it in general play, but City were constantly dangerous on the break. It’s not meant to be that way but that was the way it was and everybody took their medicine. Liverpool got around City’s box a lot but City got in Liverpool’s more often than their opponents.
Kyle Walker sat in a similar position to his for England, Andy Robertson broke out in fits and starts, Joe Gomez was ignored first half but integral second, Benjamin Mendy was more desire than quality. Sergio Aguero’s main contribution was to block lanes and get himself booked, Gabriel Jesus gave The Big Dog the chance to remind everybody it can still be his yard. All of Liverpool’s front three toiled but none could both escape attention and make themselves available. Instead they scrapped in areas.
Words will be written about them but this was another game where Liverpool missed Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and would have liked to have seen more from Naby Keita. He’s a new signing, the fixtures have been a nightmare and it will take time, but when lanes are blocked everywhere it helps having someone run beyond them, someone creating new realities. Keita never quite did that and we could do with him finding his mojo soon. Huddersfield Town, Red Star Belgrade and Cardiff City should be easier.
Gini Wijnaldum excelled again. It was his sort of game — a challenge just to keep it. He was in his element. Riyad Mahrez spurned the chance to win it. Liverpool and Manchester City instead settled to have 20 points from eight games. That extrapolates to a 95-point season. Ninety-five points.
The thing is this: these are really, really good football teams. Our starting point and our end point should be the same. Amazing that these young men made it this hard for one another and that tells the story. The stick was greater than the carrot. The examination was everything. Everyone passed.
Eight hurdles passed for both these sides, 30 more to go. Few will feel like that.
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Given the fixtures, we sort of survived and are 3rd by goal difference.
“this was another game where Liverpool missed Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and would have liked to have seen more from Naby Keita.”
Yeah said this already about Ox before the game.
We just are not clicking in the midfield nor do we have talent to unlock when we’re found out. Our front three look devoid of skill, and ideas, even though we know they have it in their locker.
Either we will unleash hell on the next game or we’re in for a rude awakening.
Lucky, but relieved to come away with a point.
Let’s see what happens after the break.
Only saw the 2nd half but without doubt I would take a draw all day against City. My MOTM would be Dejan Lovren, now recently I never thought I would be saying that statement.!. Come back fit from this pointless international break and let’s kick on again!. YNWA!!!
Would have literally paid money pre-game for a point today. Once our level dropped a little after that opening salvo, you could see we were going to have to battle a bit. We weren’t tired but there was a yard missing in everything we did. That’s everything in a game like today.
It should not be underestimated what a good point this is. You don’t get to beat City when you’re playing below optimum. It doesn’t happen. Jurgen made a really good point in his post-match where said, even though we’ve had them three times on the spin, this is the first time we’ve matched them in general play. He’s right you know. We controlled them really well and limited them to five shots. It was a strong showing from the whole backline, but special praise has to go to Dejan for coming back into the first eleven for such an intense fixture. If he’s our third choice centre-half then we really have come so far. What a lad to call on. I might look into buying a little gif of that tackle on Aguero when they had a break-out in the second half. Could play that over and over.
City legitimately changed their tactics for us today. They won’t do that again for anyone all season. Against, Spurs, Utd or Arsenal and faced with the same performance level from the home side, City go on to win that today. They move the game away and they win it. But not here and not today. They showed us more respect than they’ll show anyone else all season.
Jack Charlton had a great game for them today. Can’t understand why Billy Bremner didn’t take the pen though. Big Rowdy immense as per, even if a little reckless with that challenge on Eddie Gray.
Point each fair enough in the end.
Much happier with the result than i expected after that.
More so when i look to city’s and the plastics fixtures and see they’ve not come up against any of the tricky fixtures we have so far.
Cannot wait for this pointless set of dogshit internations to be gone so we can engage on block 2 of the fixtures.
Let’s go reds.
A game of chess on the field. Anxiety everywhere else. I’m hoping that we do more going forward but spurned the few half chances we had. I’ll take your word for it that they were so good in defence. Yet a city team without du Bruyne doesn’t posses the same danger in my mind and perhaps it would have been fun to throw caution to the wind. But it’s a game neither side wanted to loose and suffered a bit for that.
Dreadful game that most people would have turned off if their own team wasn’t playing in it.A good point though,particularly with them missing the pen,and with so many of our players below par.
Well if someone other than Us and Man U want to beat City please knock yerselves out Arsenal, Spuds, Chelsea.
A very satisfactory position to be in after 8 games. Delighted with the dogged determination from LFC so far. The goals will come and the front three will start flowing again but until then just dig in, kick, bolloc and bite for every point and come seasons end The Super Reds will be top of the pile! YNWA!!!
No problem with our red men. We will ramp it up now and get the points on the board. Joint top after 8 (difficult) games is actually alright. Watch us go now !
Agreed
Great piece .
After 8 matches we are even on points with City after we have played them and traveled to spurs and chelsea, and City have played the last 6 promoted teams… we are not perfect, But perfectly placed!
A good point today and ok with it. Although JK needs to explore alternative routes to unlock the likes of City. Otherwise we are going to come unstuck and fans will grow frustrated. There should be no hiding place at Anfield under any circumstances.
That said, more disappointed last week, should have buried Chelsea based on # of good chances created.
They played like Chelsea at the end of 13/14, except the point might help City lift the trophy while Mourinho just did it because he’s a dogshit manager with piss for blood. Chelsea got a lucky slip, whereas City earned the pen but couldn’t rub the green. Guardiola admired, Mourinho detested.
My lad was lucky to swerve watching Napoli and this one.
But we’re joint top. Up the First-Gear Reds.
What an excellent match report! Factual and relatively impartial! Some managers are a pleasure to play against, I think.
I am very worried that the other Manchester club might lure ‘our Rafa’ after Mourinho has been assassinated…