Football News: Liverpool v Bayern Munich - A Liverpool Perspective
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Liverpool v Bayern Munich A Liverpool Perspective
The game flew by, I was so surprised when the first substitutions were made and it was already the 76th minutes! It was a really good game, with Bayern failing, particularly in the second half, to take control of the game the way they wished, which meant it was more open than either side would like as both wanted to control the ball and neither fully managed it. Though, by the end of the game Bayern had settled for the draw and spent the end of the game timewasting, just looking to see it out until the second leg.
The first half was fairly even though Bayern's chances mostly came from mistakes, rather than their good play, while Liverpool were getting a bit more joy, particularly from Mane, who was tormenting Kimmich to the point Kimmich got himself booked. However, after that, Liverpool failed to get the ball to Mane enough to put pressure on Kimmmich and force him into choosing between risking another booking or letting Mane get past.
In the second half it was much more Liverpool's than Bayern's, as Bayern settled back and just looked to see out the game and concentrate on not conceding. They succeeded but left themselves needing to win at home to go through, as any score draw would see Liverpool go through at their expense, but it is the way Kovac works. It is why he did well with a lesser side but has struggled with Bayern, as he is very conservative tactically, looking to play safe rather than go out to win each game.
Kovac - his tactics are based on stifling the opposition and worked to a decent degree last night, but they gave up a lot of chances, far too many for his tactics to be considered as working. It was just the final touch that stopped Liverpool from scoring, rather than anything good done by anyone at Bayern. His decision to leave a clearly out on his feet Martinez on for the full 90 minutes was odd, to say the least. Rating: 5.5.
Neuer - was arguably the best goalkeeper in the world but has suffered with injuries in recent years, which has affected his form. Last night he was much more like the old Neuer, though still a way off his best. His kicking was not at its best, but he did look like something approaching the keeper he once was, though he does not have the same speed off the line as he did. Rating: 6.
Kimmich - despite being tormented by Mane in the early stages and getting himself booked, Kimmich had an excellent game defensively. As well as avoiding a second booking, he did keep his position, though he did so at the expense of providing any attacking thrust at all. Hard to tell whether him getting forward would have been a help to Bayern or a hindrance, but his contribution was limited to just one end of the pitch, which limits the rating he gets as, in the modern game, a full back is more important to the attack than the defence. Rating: 7.
Sule - slow and lumbering performance which gave up lots of opportunities but somehow got highly rated, alongside his fellow slow, lumbering centre back partner. I do not understand it, neither played well, they did not anticipate threats or cut them off before they got into dangerous areas of the pitch. Just putting your body in the way of a shot is the least a centre back can do, their job should be to stop attacks before that becomes necessary. Rating: 6.
Hummels - while I have heard him described as man of the match, I fail to see why. He was ok but the amount of chances that were created by Liverpool were huge and he did little to stop them. He was ok on the ball, but did nothing other than pass it sideways and back, none of the pinpoint passes that Hummels is known for. Rating: 6.5.
Alaba - also struggled to get forward like Kimmich and did not deal as well with the Liverpool attacks as the full back on the opposite flank. In fact he allowed a lot to come down his side and did not figure out how to stop any of it, other than to back away and wait for help. Rating: 6.
Martinez - did ok at times but was held back by his lack of mobility and, after an hour, looked out on his feet, which enabled Liverpool to boss the centre of midfield in the final stages. Rating: 6.
Thiago - the odd bit of good work, but largely anonymous. He does have the ability to pick a pass, but had little opportunity to do so. Rating: 5.5.
Gnabry - worked hard and had a couple of wild long range efforts but should have done a lot more considering how easily he was able to get past Robertson. Never made anything like the most of the chances he was presented. Rating: 6.
James - once he got his eye in, his corner delivery was dangerous, but the rest of his game was anonymous. Offered so little to their team other than set pieces. Rating: 5.5.
Coman - did not really offer a lot at all, he was very disappointing. Rating: 5.
Lewandowski - barely even saw the ball, other than when he was chasing it in a press. Rating: 5.5.
Subs:
Ribery - replaced Coman in the 81st minute. Showed one flash of skill but never got enough of the ball to affect the game as his substitution was just a time wasting tactic. Rating: 5.
Renato Sanches - took the place of James in the 88th minute. I am not sure how this guy is still a professional footballer, let alone playing for Bayern. Rating: 5.
Rafinha - brought on in the 90th+1 minute to replace Gnabry. Never got the chance to get involved. Rating: 5.
Klopp - had to put together a makeshift defence so a clean sheet is an excellent result. Added to that, his tactics created plenty of opportunities, just let down by the finishing on the night. Rating: 7.
Alisson - never really tested, except with the ball at his feet, when he made one mistake, other than that did well. Rating: 6.5.
Alexander-Arnold - the fact that Coman was anonymous and he was able to get forward pretty much at will and deliver tells its own story. Just needed to be a tiny bit more precise with his delivery at times. Rating: 7.
Matip - did ok, kept it simple and concentrated on defending. Missed a few extremely good chances to score though. Still has a tendency to dwell on the ball, which got the team into trouble a few times. Rating: 6.
Fabinho - he looked like the more natural centre back out of him and Matip. Another excellent performance as he puts his early season jitters behind him. Rating: 7.5.
Robertson - by far and away the worst player in a Liverpool shirt until Milner came on and allowed him license to charge forward. He is absolutely abysmal defending one-on-one, even against such an average forward as Gnabry, who went past Robertson's token efforts to stop him with ease. Also, his attempts to stop a cross are embarrassing. Please someone teach him how to stop a cross coming in!! Also his delivery has gone back to being terrible when he gets forward. He has a left foot capable of much better and should be producing it more regularly. His first half performance was a 2, but he did improve in the second, still could not stop Gnabry strolling past him with little effort though. Rating: 3.5.
Wijnaldum - another in a string of excellent performances by Wijnaldum, though he had a couple of chances to shoot which he should have taken. Rating: 7.5.
Keita - he is not quite at his best but shows flashes of his ability. He would have probably been better on the right, so that Wijnaldum could have provided protection to Robertson, as Keita does not do enough in that regard. When he does get on the ball and run, he is extremely good, but needs to do it more and in more dangerous areas. Rating: 6.5.
Henderson - absolutely outstanding, created a good chance for Salah, as well as breaking up Bayern's attempts to attack. Was man of the match in my opinion. He gave their midfield no time and space to create and did well on the ball under a lot of pressure from their press. Rating: 8.5.
Mane - did really well, but failed to make the most of getting Kimmich on a booking and never exploited that situation to cause Bayern problems. Should have done better with the chances he had as well. Rating: 7.
Salah - showed some fantastic touches of skill and fast turns to get into good positions but the final bit was not quite there, whether a pass or shot. It just was not happening for him when it mattered in the box. Rating: 7.
Firmino - insanely good in the first half, but the sickness that had made him a doubt to even play caught up with him in the second and he struggled. Though that was probably in part down to Bayern dropping deeper and blocking up all the space high up the pitch. Rating: 8.
Subs:
Milner - replaced Keita in the 76th minute. Gave Robertson the freedom to attack at will by dropping in to the space he left and working with him down the left flank. His energy and willingness made a huge difference in a short space of time. Rating: 6.5.
Origi - came on in place of Firmino in the 76th minute. Never really got into the game at all. Rating: 5.
Just to explain my ratings. I have gone for what I believe is more simple than the usual of totting up points. I have decided to go with 5 as having no effect on the game other than being a body on the pitch. Anything below 5 is a player who had a negative effect on his team and anything above 5 as a positive effect. So a goal scored would be a positive effect and add to the rating, whereas giving away a penalty with a needless challenge would take away from it.
Written by Tris Burke February 21 2019 09:18:07
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