Strap yourselves in. Liverpool are back, and in some style; West Ham United were put to the sword on the opening day at Anfield. Klopp’s men picked up where they left off during an impressive pre-season, dismantling the Hammers just as they had done to Napoli a week previously. It was an assured performance from front to back, and gave even the most cautious fan reason for optimism.
Source: liverpoolfc.com
There is only one place to start, and that is with Naby Keita. The Guinean midfielder was outstanding on his competitive debut for Liverpool, immediately showcasing exactly what he can bring to a midfield that was in need of an injection of dynamism. There will be sterner tests than Pellegrini’s West Ham, whose half-baked high line was only ever going to end one way, but Keita was ruthless in exploiting it. Time and time again he drove at the defence, sprung a pass at exactly the right moment and set a runner free. It was in this manner that the deadlock was broken, just before the twenty-minute mark: Keita released Robertson in space down the left, and the Scot produced an inch-perfect ball across the face of the goal for Salah to turn home. It was a satisfying goal to score – the best teams have got creating unmissable opportunities down to an art form, and Liverpool certainly seem to be improving in this regard.
The chances, already fairly free-flowing, came thicker and faster after the opening goal. Firmino’s selfless square ball could not be turned home by Salah from close range, but it looked a matter of time before Fabianski was beaten again. Sure enough, moments before half time, Milner did excellently to salvage a cross that looked too deep – the defence had switched off, and Sadio Mane was on hand to turn the ball home for Liverpool’s second. This was just one of many excellent contributions from the headband-sporting Milner, who was clearly not experiencing any adverse effects following his fifteen stitches; his renaissance of late has been truly remarkable, and Fabinho may be wondering just how he’s going to break into the team! Gini Wijnaldum, another player who could have shied away in the face of increased midfield competition, put in a typically tidy performance while also posing a little of the added attacking threat he has shown throughout pre-season.
The front three have little to fear in the way of starting status, and they showcased their brilliance once again for the third goal. Firmino embarked upon a typically industrious run before slipping the ball through for Sadio Mane – there was a huge slice of fortune in that the flag should clearly have been raised for offside, but Mane capitalised on the officiating error and slotted the ball away to totally kill off the game. This brace for the Senegalese winger could be a sign of things to come; he has definitely adapted to a more central role in the past few months, a move formalised by his adoption of the number 10 shirt for the new season, and he will be hoping to get on the end of many more moves over the course of the campaign.
Henderson and Shaqiri were soon introduced, a mark of the increased quality of depth that Liverpool now boast. The former Stoke man looked lively on his competitive debut, although with the match already wrapped up the tempo was understandably fairly relaxed. The captain was tidy as ever, keeping things ticking over as Klopp’s side moved towards a near-perfect opening day result. As it happened, things were about to get even better. Daniel Sturridge was introduced for the last five minutes – he has had an astonishingly good pre-season, reminding everyone exactly what he is capable of when he remains fit for a sustained period, and it took just twenty seconds for him to find the net in this cameo. He showed his familiar poacher’s instinct to get on the end of a cross from a corner and turn the ball home, in doing so sending Liverpool to the top of the table.
Now it’s just a small task of staying there for the next thirty-seven weeks. A tough ask, certainly, but one that for the first time in years the squad will feel is not beyond them. Keita looks all set to prove a truly transformative signing in the middle of the park, while Alisson will win points on his own if he even comes close to his form at Roma. Already, his cool distribution is handing Liverpool more control over games. Shaqiri provides much-needed quality cover for the front three, as well as possessing the versatility to drop into midfield when the team really needs to go for it. This amounts to nearly all of last season’s key weaknesses being addressed – and last season wasn’t half bad! In a league of fine margins, these additions could make a big difference. One thing’s for sure: we are in for an exciting season.
James Martin
Latest posts by James Martin (see all)
- A Pressing Concern - February 8, 2021
- Manchester City 1-1 Liverpool: Did Klopp’s formation gamble pay off? - November 10, 2020
- The big Premier League preview Part Two – The bottom half - September 10, 2020