{"id":1137,"date":"2017-12-30T23:29:21","date_gmt":"2017-12-30T23:29:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.andcouldheplay.com\/?p=1137"},"modified":"2017-12-30T23:30:01","modified_gmt":"2017-12-30T23:30:01","slug":"liverpool-2-leicester-city-1-match-review-analysis","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.andcouldheplay.com\/liverpool-2-leicester-city-1-match-review-analysis\/","title":{"rendered":"Liverpool 2 &#8211; Leicester City 1: Match Review &#038; Analysis"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Let\u2019s be honest, there was only one topic of conversation before kick-off in today\u2019s game against Leicester City: the imminent arrival of Virgil van Dijk. Liverpool confirmed on the 27th of December that the Southampton centre-back will become our player officially when the transfer window opens on January the first. The former Celtic man was at Anfield today, getting a warm reception from the home fans when he took his seat in the Director\u2019s Box. Personally I think he should have been paraded around the ground like the FA Cup, lifting the crowd and letting the defenders who were picked know exactly what sort of pressure to perform they were under. Instead the \u00a375 million man might have spent the first five minutes wondering what he was letting himself in for, particularly when watching Joel Matip\u2019s pass for Leicester\u2019s goal.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-partner=\"tweetdeck\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Special guest arriving at Anfield today! <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/LFC?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#LFC<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/LIVLEI?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#LIVLEI<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/If2azi0l4E\">pic.twitter.com\/If2azi0l4E<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; View of the Kop (@ViewOfTheKop_) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ViewOfTheKop_\/status\/947101567584493569?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 30, 2017<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>As poor as Matip was for the opener, the Reds reach the halfway stage in the season conceding just four goals at home in the Premier League. When you analyse those goals, things look even better. I would argue that only Burnley\u2019s was a well-worked goal, with today\u2019s effort needing a mistake from our centre-back to get underway. Other than that, the Everton penalty should never have been given and Willian\u2019s goal for Chelsea was a cross that he mishit. We also haven\u2019t conceded more than once in the league at Anfield and with our attack that means we\u2019ve got a really good chance of winning more often than we don\u2019t. Having said all of that, there\u2019s no question that van Dijk\u2019s arrival will improve us at the back. The Dutchman is a leader and he\u2019s vocal, something that the back five is currently lacking. What, then, will he have seen today?<\/p>\n<h2>Karius Staked His Claim<\/h2>\n<p>Simon Mignolet\u2019s goose should now be cooked at Liverpool. The Belgian has chucked in far too many dodgy performances to continue being selected as our regular number one. The error against Arsenal was just the latest in a long line of offences that should see him put out to pasture. J\u00fcrgen Klopp said before the game that the only reason he\u2019d brought Karius in is that we\u2019ve got another game in two days time and he wants to rotate as many players as possible, as often as possible. Perhaps there\u2019s some truth in that, but if the manager\u2019s got any sense he\u2019ll give the young German a decent shot at earning his stripes before deciding in the summer whether we need to go out and get ourselves a new first-choice goalkeeper. Certainly he will have done his cause no harm with today\u2019s performance, given that there was nothing he could do about the goal and he otherwise dealt with everything Leicester\u2019s talented attack could throw at him.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-partner=\"tweetdeck\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Karius releasing the ball straight away for Salah&#39;s equaliser is something Mignolet would never do. His distribution is on a different level. <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/lfc?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#lfc<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/u8Po7KkU6z\">pic.twitter.com\/u8Po7KkU6z<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; max riegel (@max_riegel) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/max_riegel\/status\/947173317605289984?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 30, 2017<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>It wasn\u2019t a flawless performance from him and there were a couple of occasions during the second-half when his distribution went a little bit haywire. Yet he also showed how he can turn a game around because of his speed of thought and distribution. My favourite moment of the game was when the Kop jumped down his throat for not getting the ball out quickly enough, only for the goalkeeper to immediately throw an inch-perfect ball to Andrew Robertson for the Scot to break down the left with. Anfield seemed more patient with him generally, too. Perhaps aware that Mignolet isn\u2019t good enough and therefore finally being willing to give him a chance. One thing\u2019s for certain, though, there\u2019s no way that the Belgian would have had either the ability nor the vision to make some of the passes that Karius did. He also ran out well to block Vardy at one point, even if the striker was offside. If today was an audition, Karius can be called back in.<\/p>\n<h2>Mo Salah Is Worth His Weight In Gold<\/h2>\n<p>Whilst the British press seems to be focussed on when Barcelona are going to be able to prize Philippe Coutinho away from Merseyside, I\u2019m far more worried about when the biggest clubs in Europe are going to come calling for Mohamed Salah. The Egyptian might not have done enough to impress Jos\u00e9 Mourinho during his Chelsea days, but his form since arriving at Anfield has been close to peerless. His brace today was enough to earn us all three points, with both goals showing exactly what it is that he brings to the team. The first demonstrated his intelligence to know that Sadio Man\u00e9 would somehow get the ball to him and his second goal showed his strength in being able to hold off the Leicester defender before slotting the ball past Kasper Schmeichel.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-partner=\"tweetdeck\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Salah now has the most <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/LFC?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#LFC<\/a> goals in a season before December 31st. He just passed Roger Hunt for the record. Not even Rushie managed this many!<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Dan Kennett (@DanKennett) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/DanKennett\/status\/947145247242571778?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 30, 2017<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>Perhaps his Senegalese team mate is the cautionary tale that\u2019s stopping the likes of Real Madrid and Paris St. Germain from window shopping thus far. Man\u00e9 was easily our player of the year during our last campaign, but he\u2019s been decidedly off the boil this time around. Maybe the big boys are waiting to see if Salah can maintain his form across the entire season or into the next one before lashing some money our way for him. I certainly hope that that\u2019s the case, given just how well he\u2019s started his Liverpool career. The Egyptian has been a revelation, making a mockery of people who suggested that \u00a335 million plus was too much to pay for him. What\u2019s he worth now, I wonder? To pass Roger Hunt in terms of goals scored before December and rack up even more than Ian Rush could manage suggests that the kid\u2019s got some genuine skills. More of the same next year please, Mo!<\/p>\n<h2>A Performance That Showed Grit And Determination<\/h2>\n<p>Was that our most satisfying win of the season? It certainly feels like it after the fact. We\u2019ve done the games where we\u2019ve absolutely destroyed teams, but we haven\u2019t often worked hard to grind out a result. Even when losing in the first-half we were playing some really good football, just not quite seeing things click in the final third. Still, the players remained patient and kept doing the same things that were clearly working for them, just trying their best to grind down the Leicester back line until we got the goals our play deserved. Once we\u2019d made the breakthrough we kept the pressure up, finding a second to take the game away from the Foxes and then doing enough to see out the game. It\u2019s that latter thing that we\u2019ve struggled with too often in the past, dropping points in matches like that from similar positions.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-partner=\"tweetdeck\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">One of the most satisfying wins of the season that, the sort of game we&#39;ve seen a thousand times before and drawn.<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Sean &#x1f339; (@shornKOOMINS) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/shornKOOMINS\/status\/947148641516519424?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 30, 2017<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>It was a match that demonstrated genuine character, with some players fighting through poor performances to come out of the other side. Emre Can gave another showing that would have had people heading to Melwood with pitchforks if had been Jordan Henderson doing exactly the same thing, whilst James Milner was genuinely dreadful for the first twenty minutes or so. I\u2019m not sure the two are helped by playing with each other, given Can\u2019s desire to take four or five touches when one will often do and Milner\u2019s pace meaning that he\u2019s slower than the passage of time. Regardless, those two players and the rest of the team in general were able to pull themselves together and grind out a really good performance. The main question is, can we do it again at Turf Moor?<\/p>\n<h2>Let\u2019s Talk About Time-Wasting<\/h2>\n<p>I always love to see Liverpool win, for obvious reasons. Yet nothing gives me as much joy as when we win against a team that has spent the majority of the match trying desperately to waste time. Given that the Foxes took the lead within three minutes, it\u2019s no major surprise that they didn\u2019t want to move that match along at a rip-roaring pace. Even so, the extent to which Kasper Schmeichel was allowed to waste time without coming under any scrutiny from the referee was a genuine disgrace. Time-wasting as a tactic is becoming more and more of a problem, with the Danish goalkeeper taking more than thirty seconds to get the ball back in play every time he had a goal kick. What\u2019s worse is that the referee spoke to him several times and warned him about his behaviour but never actually did anything about it. What\u2019s the point?<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-partner=\"tweetdeck\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">One minute of added time. One actual minute. Schmeichel been taking about 30 secs for every goal kick. Even worse than Foster in the WBA game, but the ref isn\u2019t remotely bothered.<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Joel Rabinowitz (@joel_archie) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/joel_archie\/status\/947132297026965504?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">December 30, 2017<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>The referee wasn\u2019t the best today, seemingly deciding to give bounce balls rather than make a decision about who should get a free-kick. Leicester City decided use of the balls, that should have been ours, to kick it right into our corner and then attack us. Thankfully, Emre Can had the sense to do exactly the same thing back to them late in the second-half. My anger and annoyance at time-wasting is actually rarely to do with the result of the match it takes place in; after all, we might not have won today if the Foxes hadn\u2019t decided to waste so much time needlessly. Instead I\u2019m annoyed because we\u2019re paying good money to attend these matches and the ball is normally in play for less than an hour. Why do referees insist on letting goalkeepers get away with murder in terms of how long it takes them to do stuff? Sometimes they\u2019ll book them, but it\u2019s rarely earlier than an hour or so into the match and they\u2019ll never book them twice if they carry on. Soon this will be something the FA will need to look at.<\/p>\n<h2>Happy New Year<\/h2>\n<p>Last but not least from me, a quick note to wish you all a happy new year. I\u2019ll be back again with a blog post for the Burnley match in a day and a half\u2019s time, but I wanted to say thanks for following the blog and interacting with me on Twitter. It\u2019s hard work to write 2000+ words after every single game and I hope that you continue to enjoy reading them. It\u2019s obviously so much better to write after a win, too! Have an amazing New Year\u2019s Eve and let\u2019s hope that the Reds make 2018 a year to remember. All the best.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Let\u2019s be honest, there was only one topic of conversation before kick-off in today\u2019s game against Leicester City: the imminent arrival of Virgil van Dijk. Liverpool confirmed on the 27th of December that the Southampton centre-back will become our player officially when the transfer window opens on January the first. The former Celtic man was at Anfield today, getting a warm reception from the home fans when he took his seat in the Director\u2019s Box. Personally I think he should have been paraded around the ground like the FA Cup, lifting the crowd and letting the defenders who were picked [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1138,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.andcouldheplay.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1137"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.andcouldheplay.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.andcouldheplay.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.andcouldheplay.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.andcouldheplay.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1137"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.andcouldheplay.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1137\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1139,"href":"https:\/\/www.andcouldheplay.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1137\/revisions\/1139"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.andcouldheplay.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1138"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.andcouldheplay.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1137"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.andcouldheplay.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1137"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.andcouldheplay.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1137"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}