Thread by @babuyagu

Seeing some old tweets on my timeline saying the LFC app confirmed Jota is injured today.

Guy can't catch a break this season. Every time he hits a patch of form he gets injured.

https://twitter.com/LFC/status/1393936797445545990

Yeah he is out. Shame.

Jones in for Gini and Mane in for the injured Jota are the only changes to the side that took a slash on the United pitch in midweek.

Thoughts?

Said it before but I like the balance of this midfield and think we see a lot of this trio next season.

Keita & Ox were meant to be our penetrative midfielders but neither has managed to stay fit.

All I want is for Fat Sam to suffer a humiliating beating today of such proportions that it makes him unemployable in the Premier League.

I thought taking bungs would result in that, but it seems white old guys in the oldboys network keep getting work regardless of everything.

Phillips allowing a smaller player come from behind him, get in front of him, hold him off and win a flick on from a goal kick isn't a good look for a CB.

I also noticed earlier that Rhys, Robbo and Ali did well to work the ball around and free Robbo with space in front of him. He turned, and realised there was absolutely nobody in front of him, turned back and gave to RHys - then moaned about the fact nobody was there to pass to.

Phillips does well to escape a marker but can't get good contact on the header and it skims off his head wide. Needs to attack those balls better. Seemed to jump too early.

Waste that from Salah. Did well to get space to play a ball in - and we had people in the box, but he put it straight into the arms of the keeper.

West Brom worrying me from set pieces here. Causing some confusion, winning second ball in our box and then winning a back post header - would have been offside anyway but a warning not to give cheap freekicks away around our own box here.

I never understand why refs don't penalise that shit.

Thiago about to take a quick freekick. Robson-Kanu jumps onto his back, then picks up the ball and throws is a few yards away saying that is where the foul was.

Refs just let shithousing like that go every time.

Thiago proving once and for all that 'getting the ball' doesn't matter unless you are a defending flying into a tackle in the box. Then any touch on the ball is relevant.

Shit. 1-0 down. Robson-Kanu gets in behind, Phillips decides to be a few yards deeper than everyone else. Actually the whole defence was amateur which isn't a shock given they have a handful of pro minutes between them. Going to be rough this.

Rhys having a bit of a mare here. Phillips not much better.

I remember the pair + Ali had a ropey first 20 minutes against United and grew into the game. I am hoping we get similar here because right now we are making Robson-Kanu look like Mbappe.

How the fuck is that a foul by Fabinho? That is wild.

I mentioned earlier about second balls and it felt like for the goal we were getting a foot on the ball but the midfield couldn't regain it and eventually it broke forcing Rhys to decide to mark the forward or press the ball in midfield - Phillips dropping off at the same time

just cost us. And again that comes down to communication. One CB doesn't know what the other is doing.

We are badly missing Kabak. He reads the game and has a back for covering for mistakes before his partner before they make them. Phillips expecting Rhys to press the ball there would be good. Rhys knowing Phillips tendency to drop off (like Skrtel) would be good.

Mane fires wide from close range. Fabinho and Thiago involved in working it into the box, cut back to Mane - fires wide. Should do much better there.

https://twitter.com/KevinMac29/status/1393958407149920262

On the Skrtel comparison - I talk about it in this thread here. Essentially he is terrified of someone or the ball getting behind him and makes poor decisions due to that fear.

https://twitter.com/babuyagu/status/1393050205382234118

What a ball that by Trent. Salah pulls it down but can't get a decent shot off - it's tamely at the keeper. We are opening them up at times though and that is encouraging. I would be worried if everything was just in front of them and we were hitting frustrated long shots.

Powerout lost a few minutes of the game.

Come back to see Salah fire into the bottom corner. Miss anything else?

Bobby & Mané trying to work an opening, WBA defender wins it back. Mané tackles him edge of the box. Breaks to Salah who fires into the bottom corner from 20 yards first time. 1-1

Only concern there is Salah was grimacing and limping after the goal. Hopefully didn't tweak something when hitting that shot.

Mané with an unpredictable backheel - breaks to Bobby around the penalty spot, smashes it first time. Crashes against the bar.

Jesus fucking christ Phillips what the hell was that. Comes running out of the defence and jumps for a header that he gets nowhere near - Lovren v Kane like - WBA in behind again. Trent comes across and shows our CBs how to do their job.

Sort it out back there FFS

My big concern here is this reminds me of one of those Mignolet/Lovren/Moreno performances where an early mistake by Phillips is making him take increasingly drastic actions to try and 'make up for it' and in turn making even more and worse mistakes.

Little things that have no statistical value but... when Bobby gave away the ball there Thiago immediately moved out to make sure there was no easy out ball once the defender got it under control. So he had to just kick it into our half and give it back to use. And that is how

you control games. You don't give the ball away, you are careful in progressing it so you have few counters to deal with, and when you lose it you are already compact and have the shape and structure to prevent the opponent getting out with the ball.

Mane almost scores. Cuts inside and bends one into the top corner. Keeper looks beat. Defender heads it over the bar at full stretch.

Chipping away at them here.

I never understood the inconsistency with how injuries are treated. Bartley should be off the pitch here getting treatment. But Mike Dean is letting him get a simple cut eyebrow get treated on the pitch. Why?

https://twitter.com/livingmonolith/status/1393964234749333511

Yep. They can't solve problems before they can escalate so they typically turn a lot of basic attacks into emergency situations where something desperate is required - like that Trent block.

First half thoughts?

Mike Dean has done a good job of breaking up play, slowing the game down and interrupting attacking momentum for Fat Sam. He's just a shit ref though, we know this. The EPL really need to bring through some young fresh blood.

That said, one of the new faces is Coote who is by far one of the worst we have seen in the EPL. So maybe the fact the level below is far worse explains why almost all our refs are above the recommended retirement age from FIFA.

In terms of the actual football, it is pretty much what we expected - Fat Sam team doing what it does and us needing to try and play regardless... and struggling to do so. Thing is in games like this, you can't give them easy goals and with our CBs that isn't really possible.

We can't pin a team in and patiently chip away at them, eventually break them down, get a head then pick them off on the counter when they open up a little. Because our CBs keep handing them the initiative. So we are trying to stay level rather than get ahead.

Watching the goal back and the focus is going to be on Rhys but it's hindsight that makes it a bad decision. He has two bad choices - leave the ball without pressure 20 yards from goal. Leave a runner.

So if a goal is scored it is an easy finger to point. As the only player that can press the ball he probably has to do so.

Then you are hoping for the rest of the defence to read that and they don't.

Phillips in particular has to assume he will step out there and move across to fill the gap between him and Robbo. He can also step up and play the runner offside but that is a big risk.

Just disappointing goal to concede as it is really messy. losing all the second balls leaves a kid with 2 bad choices to make and nobody reacts to the most likely outcome until it is too late.

I don't want to complain too much, or have a pop at the kids because there is no alternative. The ~5 names who would be ahead of them aren't available. And once Virg, Joe, Matip, Kabak, maybe Konate or whoever else we sign is back this moaning becomes redundant.

But it is just frustrating to know that despite all that has happened this season with injuries - this is kinda in our own hands if we can beat 3 of the weaker teams in the league. And yet we are stuttering.

Corner WBA. And that all starts with Robbo giving the ball away with a shit pass when we had 7 people ahead of the ball. You easily concede on the counter if you do that. You can't risk giving the ball away in that situation at all. Ever. Go backwards if needs be.

What a ball by Thiago. What a touch by Trent to slow it down, what a ball into the box... eventually Mane scores but is slightly offside. Rightfully disallowed.

Wow Salah is furious at himself there punching the ground. He looks fired up here.

Some of our defending has been laughable today. How we went from 2 v 4 to 2 v Phillips there was pitiful. WBA should have scored there.

Trent saves Phillips again. He runs out of defence, dives into a tackle and ends up 30 yards behind play.

https://twitter.com/The_hate_train/status/1393971103119417358

Probably counted about 5 or 6 times today where a CB has punched a hole in our backline by deciding to run out and try to win a ball that doesn't need to be won.

Ideally we can get ahead in this game and then play a little deeper so our CBs have less space to worry about, but right now they are terrifying me everytime there is a 50/50 on the halfway line.

Shaq coming on. I assume for Jones?

I thoroughly endorse the idea of Shaq being on the pitch here to try and pick the lock. Move to a 4231?

Corner from a WBA, Salah gets played in, defender forces him a little wide - shot right at the keeper who holds onto it.

Guess I am behind by a few minutes. Sounds what I would have expected tbh.

https://twitter.com/CarloColluci/status/1393972323749928970

Another head injury. Full expect Dean to let them waste 15 minutes treating this on the pitch here.

Rhys did really well there 2v1 to win there. We need to defend these set pieces better though - you allow a few situations like that and you will concede.

Penalty shout for Mane going down. Probably another of those given anywhere else on the pitch. Not in the box though.

Robbo keeps coming inside and making us really narrow here. We had had nobody on the left flank there and the player nearest the touchline was maybe 25 yards from it.

I can't imagine that is a tactical choice from Klopp - but yet Robbo keeps doing it. We need to stretch them.

Not sure how that was an advantage Mike Dean? A freekick on the edge of their box seems more advantageous than when Thiago receives it 40 yards from goal.

That looked offside.

Disallowed for the player in front of Ali. Robbo again though about 5 yards deeper than the rest of the team has become a theme for 2021.

Phillips is now losing everything in the air. I mean, we need to deal with second balls better but we are having a LOT of second balls to deal with.

He has won 5 of 11 Aerial Duels today. It feels like those lost ones have all come in a bunch recently.

Rhys has won 3/5. Fabinho 3/6. Robbo 0/1. Thiago 2/3

Robson-Kanu in again. Phillips steps out on a long ball leaving him a free run in behind. Almost costs us. Corner

Thiago fires just wide from a similar spot he scored v Soton.

Why is Mike Dean not making him go off the pitch on the side he was on. Instead he stops him - slowing it down further - and then lets him walk all the way across the pitch.

Shit ref

Shaq for the winner. Just had that vibe. Like Benayoun v Fulham

Oof, that was brilliant by Trent up to the shot. Bobby cuts them open from deep, Trent gets it in the box, cuts inside on his left and gets under it - over the bar.

Rhys off for Gini

How the fuck is that not a foul on Bobby edge of the box? How?

Fuck Mike Dean man, seriously. Awful ref

I think this is what people miss with the whole 'we didn't deserve to win' narrative. A ref impacts the game when he is shit, breaks up play, kills momentum, ignores several fouls in and around the box. If he refs the game properly then it changes the dynamic of the match.

Can Klopp have a word with Phillips and tell him to never try to play the ball into the box again?

That was a big rugby up and under and was absolutely nowhere near any of our players and was never staying in play. What is the point?

It reminded me of those speculative Dejan Lovren drives from 50 yards that he would hit the roof of the stand with.

Oh Gini... get that on target mate.

Salah lays it off to him, Gini bends wide with a clear sight of goal from the edge of the box.

Based on that Mane header, and how our CBs have defended all game - I am now almost certain that Phillips never shouts on the pitch. Mane seemed to have no idea he was behind him.

ALISON SCORESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSss

The fuck!

Big man comes up for a 95th minute corner and BOMBS the header into the far corner. You beautiful big bearded bastards. Love you!

Ederson could never. Oh my days!!!!!!!!

That is genuinely on of the best headers I have seen. Fucking Vieri-esque that. Absolutely powered it into the far corner. Shades of Lovren v Dortmund about it. Fuck me I'm spent!