WHAT did it feel like?
What was it?
How did it feel? It felt like two dropped. It felt increasingly frustrating. It felt like bad subs. It felt like Ferguson at Anfield. Where we are United and they are us.
What it was? The point that puts us top. Four points from United over the season. A solid rearguard performance at a tough place to go.
What it feels like is what it is. What it is will become what it feels like. All draws are defined by what happens next. What happens next?
Liverpool went to Old Trafford and stood up and were counted. The back eight, anyway. Alisson makes a phenomenal stop after a Lukaku through ball. Milner battles. Andy Robertson lives through a broken finger and produces.
Liverpool’s centre backs impress. Joel Matip breaks forward well and while he is poor in the passage of play that leads to Lukaku’s cunning he still performs well across the 90. It must be odd being Virgil van Dijk, entire game plans based around the idea of avoiding allowing you near the game. Play away from him rather than around him. Don’t go near him.
The front three, whatever constituted them, showed a lack of quality, thought and touch. This needs arresting and it needs arresting fast. They would have a fair point if they wanted the ball faster, perhaps. But they had that at times and still struggled to be as impressive as you would hope.
The point of being Ferguson is hanging in for that moment of quality or luck. They lacked both.
The game was a maelstrom, United’s supporters up for the scale of the task, and for what would be produced, and the nature of the game added to that. The injuries added to it — how much we felt we needed something and how much they felt they had a side to get behind. They wanted to believe and United encouraged that; a good side but one that needed to be clung to and encouraged.
There is something around wondering over every change. Sturridge ahead of Shaqiri, Origi or Keita. Then Henderson off at the moment he began to run the game. Then Salah for Origi. But this is the luxury of it not being your job.
He has to sort his out as he goes and he backs Daniel Sturridge. He has the experience of Shaqiri and also Wijnaldum’s season. He lastly backs Origi after Salah being poor. He gets all that.
United defended well throughout, showed that they are good lads, Victor Lindelof deserves his full name. They showed. They get to. They are the fourth best side in the country.
Prior to the game I had hoped and thought Liverpool would go three clear. Anything for three clear. Give a kidney for three clear. I didn’t care for the statement, I wanted the points. In 2001-2, in 2008-9, in 2013-14, I saw Liverpool make statement wins, put points on the board, produce. I saw no league titles.
Massive statements are bullshit; points on the board are reality. The only reality that matters right now is one point clear; 11 to go. I wanted more today but then I would have taken this in August, in November, on January 3. Liverpool can see this whole thing out from here. This is liberating. But there are a million miles to go.
Twenty-seven down. Eleven to go. We are in the box seat.
Attacking better isn’t asking the world. Liverpool need to be better. If they are, they will be the best.
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— The Anfield Wrap (@TheAnfieldWrap) February 24, 2019
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The Old Trafford pitch looked slow and may well have contributed to the injuries. It certainly looks as though it caused a lot of our forwards quick fire passes to fall short or go behind the man!
Agree regarding the pitch, it was like glue.
Fair enough. Doubt you’d have been elated if it was offered you 2 Jan.
Love your stuff Neil. Most weeks it soothes. A balm that stops the incessantly burning nerves. The clarity that makes me stop and think and reflect and recant.
Not this week though.
I still love your stuff but I feel lost and broken and worn.
I honestly think today is the day we lost the title.
Think City have an easier run in.
Hope and pray I’m wrong.
At least City will have 120min in their legs and Fernandinho off with groin. However, we didn’t look champions today. Mane find a
grey shirt. FFS.
He wasn’t the worst, that honour has to go to Milner who had a bad day when it came to passing, crossing and generally finding any of his team mates.
I think the most disappointing feeling is one of just simply not being good Enough. I think City failing is our best hope. Watford a huge game now as they all are..
Would go along with most of that Neil, but mentioning Milner only to say he battled is flattering him massively. I love the guy and what a servant, but nfortunately he needs to be lumped in with the front three shit show – I thought he was absolutely awful. Easily the worst James Milner performance with the ball I can recall.
I completely concur with this. In fact Milner inability on the right actually hindered us all game.
I personally felt that one option was to at least try switching him and Henderson’s positions for 15 to 20mins and then if not working, haul Milner off and bringing on TAA.
It was a very poor performance from James, the front 3 and all the 3 subs we brought on.
“Henderson off at the moment he began to run the game.” Hardly, he was his usual pedestrian self.
Go and support Marine.
Neil love your positivity despite the poor performance in the middle and up front.
Klopp’s best player – Alisson saved us a point and embarrassment against a United team that lost three players in a space of 30 minutes, and a one-legged Rashford.
Klopp’s second best player – the Cameroonian Messi was the only player who nearly scored for both teams.
Our defense played a masterclass more than twice.
Not surprised to see 1 shot on target and an 8 yard free-kick blunder. I still maintain this lot are no good at scoring goals from outside the box, let alone from inside when the pressure mounts.
United were there for the taking, especially for the second 45 minutes.
Instead Luke Shaw continued his dominance over Salah. Yes Luke Shaw of all players.
And as much as I am critical of Henderson, I don’t know what Klopp was thinking bringing him off.
Klopp sets up Liverpool to triumph and then decides to kick the foundation from underneath at times. With the number of draws it feels like he’s trying to match the 2009 season or something.
Anyways we are still up by one point. City will not relent especially after winning the Carabao cup.
No option now but to win the rest of the games – the next two like Carragher pointed out against Watford and Everton, might be the biggest games.
Would hate to see Everton repeat the favor for Origi’s comedic stunner.
I wish Jurgen can sort out some of the issues before the next game.
Generous on Milner. He was the outlet every time, the one who had time, yet the one who continually failed to find a man with the final ball. Trent might have defensive frailties but his delivery would have been key. The games that have provided the opportunities this season, city away, Leicester home and now this one, have been squandered. United might be 4th and on a run, but that United today were for the taking.
Just seen a stat. With TAA in the team we average 2.5pts have our best XG ratings, score more and concede less. Without him we average 1.5pts score less and concede more.
Milly stank all game on Sunday. His worst showing for us. He was indeed a big part of our failings in this game. Klopp must have been able to see what I and everybody else could see and yet didn’t alter this. That frustrated me more than anything.
Well put Neil. It’s an age thing but in times past, a David Fairclough or Ronny Rosenthal would appear from nowhere……and grasp the chance……any takers? Up the reds!
The subs that came on today ended up being worse than the 3 who went off. At least Salah was ‘showing’ for things, more than can be said about those who came on.
The real issue though was the fact we had an outlet all game on our right flank and yet Milly spent all game smacking it into the spectators. That should been altered after 20mins, yet for some frustrating mystery we continued to allow Milly to twat the ball into the crowd and did nothing to alter this.
Spurs of course lost to Burnley 2-1 this weekend. This league is not easy. Pretty much any other season we would all say a point at OT is a good result. The fact that we get a point with so many below par individual performances gives me some hope that we are heading in the right direction and will pick up the pace again starting on Wednesday.
We have to pick up the pace, as Bournemouth at home aside, we have been shite far too often in 2019.
Time is right for rockets up arses. None should be spared. 12 games in total as it stands (with Bayern away) to pull fingers out and start to turn up in games and have a fucking go.
I’ll be honest. After today I’ve resigned myself to not winning it this year. That way disappointment doesn’t hurt as much. Maybe next season? Na, this is the best chance we get. And if not now, when?
What happens if City’s legs fall off? What if they lose 2 more games? We must win our next 2. This is when we find out what’s in the hearts and souls of our players and our fans. Talking about winning means nothing now. Nothing. Jurgen earns his corn this week.
Winning it by default? Winning it being 2nd best? Winning it limping over the line? I’ll take any way in a heartbeat.
But 6 from 6 is vital. Any less bears no consideration.
Never believed we would win the League this season and with performances like Sunday that lacked everything, it does little to alter my expectations.
Sunday for me wasn’t about League titles, it was about spanking those fuckers. The failure to do anything other than be abject was the thing that pissed me off mostly.
If we win the League I will be the one most shocked. However I am happy that to a large extent we are in the mix. But fuck me, we have been poor far too often at times, especially for the whole of 2019, with Bournemouth being the exception.
I keep saying this, but it is time for internal bollockings and getting the message across to step the fuck up for the run in. Not arsed if we go down in flames. I am arsed about being abject of late. That bit is doing everyone’s heads in. So fuck talk of league titles etc. Time to show some fucking pride and to give it some.
Wee fact: 1st time Liverpool emerged from 90 mins at Old Trafford at the top of the league since 1983…
@Neu75 You bring up a good parallel.
As much as I don’t like correlating to the past, one other thing I do recall from watching that season, was LFC were not easy to beat.
Something I’ve seen in this season’s team performances compared to past seasons, ever since Jurgen has tried to improve the back line.
Maybe you’re onto something.
Not only that, we emerged 1pt ahead of citeh last time we played Utd in December, and we’re 1pt ahead now!
To get a point at Old Trafford when we have an off day should be seen as something positive. This point yesterday and the Origi winner versus Everton could prove pivotal. 6 at home and 5 away for the last 11 games in the League. Not a bad run in at all. And City still need to play at Old Trafford. Ox on the way back as well as Gomez. We have a great change now! Hopefully Anfield will be positive and noisy on Wednesday.
Injuries didn’t affect what utd had to do in their half ie defend deep, in fact they just got deeper in the 2nd. People need to stop with the compliments.
For us it threw us out totally.
We need both full backs working well (no depth), and one mf breaking the lines to give the front guys a chance.
Klopp was making sure we didn’t concede from a counter as that was all they were going to try. He got that right which got us a point.
Sturridge as the no.9 sub didn’t work well but if the full backs don’t support the attack well then it doesn’t work at all .
We’re going to face a lot of 9 player defences and some counters. I don’t fancy our chances.
We could really do with the autumn 2016 versions of Coutinho and Lallana being back in the team. That was the best team Klopp has built at consistently playing through the bus-parkers, in my opinion. Our front 3 are brilliant but relatively containable if they haven’t got grass to run into or dribblers in midfield to create overloads.
I would have taken a draw before the game. It’s a tough place to win at for us. Hardly ever won there in the 1980’s. At times it felt like it was set up for Utd to nick it one nil. The boys stayed strong and got a good point. I remember Spring 1997 when we lost at Villa Pk by the odd goal when competing for the title but we got a point yesterday. Let’s enjoy it and focus on ourselves. One game at a time. Up the Reds!