Football News: Burnley vs. Liverpool: A Liverpool (but not Ed001) Perspective

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Much has been said about the weather conditions of the game and, whilst all players must endure them equally, such conditions certainly help level the playing field and reduce the quality gap between the sides. Having said that I thought both teams struggled in the conditions and, as a result, fluent, attractive football was hard to come by. It was a scrappy game at times and, though we enjoyed considerably more possession, struggled to really utilize it. Both teams seemed overly keen to pump long balls forward and, though Burnley had some success, we didn't, and it meant we lost possession frequently.

Burnley are a physical team and their new signing Weghorst is the perfect fit for them in terms of their style. He made life very difficult for our defense and was a constant target of their long balls and had decent amounts of success. It was noticeable that, after he went off injured, we looked far more comfortable, and were able to see out the game in comparative comfort. It's a shame Burnley like the long ball and physical aspect of the game so much because, if they actually tried to utilize Cornet and McNeil more, they might have more success.

The sit deep and counter tactic is one we seem to come up against week after week now and, though Burnley defended well, it never felt like their counter was overly dangerous. There were a number of balls over the top in the first half, but the amount of times they were flagged offside after the passage of play concluded meant that I can't remember how many were genuinely successful attempts. I do find the penchant for linesman to keep their flag down very annoying - for tight calls I understand but there were clear and obvious offsides that they just allowed to continue, why I don't know. The sad thing is that almost all of their calls were correct, perhaps VAR, and it's hairs breadth judgements, have sapped their confidence?

Burnley

Their tactics aren't a secret: be physical, take advantage of set pieces, work hard, sit deep, aim for the target man (formerly Wood now Weghorst) . They did all of these things and made life difficult. Upfront they lacked a genuine finisher, something they've lacked for a long time, and though Weghorst was difficult to deal with, he certainly didn't look like the prolific striker they require. Similarly Jay Rodriguez, though he worked hard, doesn't provide the goals they need, and this will continue to be an issue for them. They are struggling this season but I'm not sure why as Dyche's formula has proven successful for a good period of time now. Is it purely luck (or lack thereof)? Or is Burnley's chronic lack of under investment finally catching up to them? Either way they're in trouble though if they can fight and battle as they did here they may still get out of trouble. Cornet is the only real quality they have upfront but they do not use him anywhere near enough - I do not expect Dyche to change his mantra - if they keep struggling for results he might have to try something different. With C.V. and injury issues maybe it should come as no surprise that one of the smallest, most frugal of clubs is having a tough time.

Liverpool

Klopp - We won the game and, although it was tough, 3 points are all that matter. I'm not convinced the starting line up was correct though, the inclusion of Keita especially baffling, but it ultimately got the job done and whilst it wasn't vintage Liverpool it was enough. Taking Henderson off was the right call and it was noticeable that our possession improved with Thiago on the pitch. I'm not convinced that the instructions for each player are the best though - I thought our defensive line was too high at times and I thought that our fullbacks were way too advanced. It's good they attack so much but I mean both Robertson and Trent had chances to be put through on goal! I thought a little more caution would've been better. Henderson also seems to be instructed to drift out right, if Elliott is playing this makes perfect sense, with Henderson not so much.

Alisson - 7/10 - A few hairy moments but overall I thought he was very good. Played the sweeper keeper role well, made a few really good saves (though how many would've counted due to late offside flags I'm not sure), and played well. The only thing I can criticise is that he sometimes looked to distribute the ball really quickly, when I felt like it called for a calmer approach, but again this may of been a strategic decision from Klopp.

Van Dijk - 6/10 - As he often does he learned and adapted to Weghorst's threat and got better at dealing with it as the game progressed. His passing wasn't at its best, conditions undoubtedly played a part, but he was overall solid if unspectacular. He was too casual at times though, especially playing the high line, and was too reliant on the linesman belatedly raising a flag. He was usually saved by that but there were times that he got it wrong, needs to be more switched on, better teams can and will punish it.

Matip - 6/10 - I think he deals with aerial threats well so this game, and Burnley's set up, played to his strengths. The ball in behind him was always on though and, if Burnley had a bit more pace up front, could have punished him. He played neither spectacularly well nor unbelievably badly, but against top level opposition I feel he has key weaknesses that can be exploited. This opposition suited him though and he did reasonably well overall.

Robertson - 6/10 - A bit of a strange game for the Scot he was decent defensively, and I thought good positionally, but he struggled to link up effectively going forward. He did put in a number of dangerous crosses early on, but that was as good as it got for him in an attacking context. His work rate was excellent though and, unlike others, he looked lively and up for it. He did threaten with his runs forward but the link up play meant it rarely came to anything. Again decent but unspectacular, a recurrent theme.

TAA - 5/10 - This was not his best game he looked tentative and unsure in possession and this was reflected in some very haphazard distribution. We know the quality he is capable of but we never got to see much of it. I thought positionally he was OK but defensively he struggled far more than Robertson did. Again he didn't play awfully but he has set the bar very high for himself, unfortunately he did not reach anywhere near the levels he is capable of.

Fabinho - 8/10 - Man Of The Match - Even if he hadn't scored I'd of still given him the MOTM. He broke up play countless times, his distribution was very good in comparison to others, he was very mobile, and he is now popping up with goals, he's been excellent recently and has underlined his value to the team.

Henderson - 4.5/10 - Not a good game from the skipper he struggled with his distribution, ball retention, positioning, he just didn't have a good day of it. Again drifting to the right, though clearly a coaching instruction, does not suit his style of play all that well and, as teams like to double up on Salah, it just congests the space on that side of the pitch. I thought he looked a little better second half but he had picked up a knock so substituting him was the right call.

Keita - 5/10 - Honestly this rating is an average based off his first and second half performances. 1st half he was ok, distributed the ball and kept possession reasonably, had a decent attempt on goal, wasn't at all bad. Second half he seemed to completely disappear, he didn't want the ball, he didn't try to effect the game, he was essentially on cruise control. He has been on cruise control far too often in his Liverpool career. It is not enough for him to play the simple pass and then go hiding, Gini often did the same thing but he was athletic and able to break play up and tackle, Naby does this nowhere near enough. He has the technique to make things happen but seems wary of actually doing so, at this stage of his career I don't know if he'll ever change. As always we're left asking 'is this it? '.

Mane - 5/10 - He was ok in the first half, and had a really good chance to score, but as the game went he became progressively poorer and his inability to retain possession caused us issues. He did knock the header on for Fabinho to score with but that was as good as his contributions got. He did not link up well with team mates and he seemed to offer less and less the more the game went on. His substitution was the correct one, I simply would've brought on Diaz instead of Jota.

Salah - 6/10 - little by the way of clear cut chances but his work rate was astonishing he never stopped from first minute until last. Add to that he was kicked and pushed and harried time and again, as well as doubled up on, and he still carried a threat. He won't be happy with some of his interplay but his hard work kept them busy and it meant they could never lose focus.

Firmino - 5/10 - This rating will rile a lot of people as, if the live chat is anything to go by, he was deemed the worst player on the pitch. And look to be fair his passing was woeful, his ball retention woeful, he was the cause of multiple attacks breaking down. However, his role was off the ball was hugely important to us, and helped us control the game, especially second half. He dropped deep to act as an extra midfielder and it gave Burnley little time on the ball which in turn meant they struggled to create opportunities, particularly second half. Some will say it's not enough to do only that, and I agree, but it was very important in that type of game and, had Jota of started ahead of him, we would of given up more chances to Burnley and had less control over midfield when out of possession. His role was significant yesterday and, out of possession was very good. It is a worry that his passing and link up play looks so poor though, hopefully this will improve.

Subs:

Thiago - 7/10 - The difference he made was instantaneous he was calm on the ball, his distribution was excellent, and he helped us wind down the game without too much drama. Burnley struggled noticeably to see much of the ball after he was introduced and, when Weghorst went off, they lost their out ball and thus any attacking impetus. The fact he is always demanding the ball also takes pressure off those around him and, because he is to tidy in possession, it makes things easier. You could argue he should of started, though expectations are he will start the Champions League game so it was an understandable decision.

Jota - 4/10 - If memory serves he had one good chance that was saved but little else. Again I was not happy with his work rate, even though Mane wasn't great he never stopped working hard, Jota barely broke sweat when he came on. Again this is all well and good when he scores, but if he doesn't it always begs the question of what he is actually contributing. Very enigmatic player, as good as he has been goalscoring wise he still has significant improvements to make to his all round performance.

Milner - N/A - Late, time-wasting substitution.

Conclusions:

Klopp called it a potential banana skin and he wasn't wrong. A tough, intimidating atmosphere, a hugely physical side, wild weather conditions, it was a tough game and, given the severity of the weather, it's not a surprise that both teams struggled for rhythm. We were susceptible to their attacks, especially first half, but we improved markedly 2nd half and I thought it was, in spite of the conditions, a more controlled display then. Ultimately you take the 3 points anyway you can get them in such circumstances, we continue to accumulate points and stay not a million miles away from City and that's as much as can be hoped for right now. Champions League this week, I hope we show our quality, I'm curious to see if Inter will adopt a deep defence/ counter strategy like so many other teams this season? We shall see, but a hard fought win for us is a good platform to go into the game with.

Written by Seano_ February 14 2022 13:19:17