Brighton 2-1 Liverpool (Dunk 39′, Mitoma 90+2′ | Elliott 30′)
AMEX STADIUM — Jurgen Klopp, his countenance glazed, stood motionless as the Brighton celebrations teed off under his nose. He had been here before, of course, just a fortnight ago at this very ground. Perhaps he is reconciled to this kind of outcome, adjusted to the new reality embracing his once swashbuckling team.
This wasn’t the emphatic trouncing to which Liverpool were subject in the Premier League. Yet it was just as painful since Kaoru Mitoma’s goal in added time cut off one more route to a trophy.
Liverpool are still alive in the Champions League, but what is that worth if they can’t deal with Brighton in the FA Cup? And that is not to insult the Albion, who after all sit above Liverpool in the Premier League. Rather it is to establish the measure of how far Liverpool have fallen in so short a time. As deserving a victory as this was, Brighton are some way from the stratospheric lane in which Liverpool travelled in the high Klopp period.
Teams are like any organism, they pass through cycles. The great Klopp apotheosis has passed. It is now a question of renewal, recognising which elements to tweak and whether the gegenpresser of lore has the appetite for it.
There is no obvious suggestion that the intensity with which Klopp is associated is fading. Then again Bill Shankly’s retirement came out of a clear blue sky two months after lifting the FA Cup in 1974. At least he left with a pot in the cabinet. The exit of Kenny Dalglish was even more shocking, walking away from the old Anfield Boot Room one February morning in 1991 with the defending champions three points clear at the top of the table.
More from Football
Klopp made only one change yesterday to encourage familiarity, to establish patterns and boost rhythm. It is not easy with so much of the superstructure under repair at the same time. Mo Salah looks adrift in a front line excluding Robert Firmino and Sadio Mane. The chance he spurned in the 24th minute when clean through on goal would have been swallowed up in the recent past.
Cody Gakpo might be a player one day but in this present iteration offers none of the connecting threads or playmaker capabilities of Firmino. On the left, Elliott is not the optimal choice and therefore seriously sub-Mane in that role, and for that matter sub-Luis Diaz and Diogo Jota too.
He is infinitely better in the Firmino role. Indeed, it was his pass that fed Salah, and his finish that put Liverpool ahead from that very part of the pitch. But Liverpool have spent 140 million quid on two centre forwards, neither of whom is experienced enough to carry the responsibility of leading the Liverpool line. Darwin Nunez, an £80m apprentice, has fallen behind new January arrival Cody Gakpo.
The big No.9 appears back in fashion. The problem is with Gakpo filling that part of the pitch here Liverpool did not get as much out of Elliott as they might, despite his goal, and it was he who made way for Nunez during the first wave of substitutions on the hour.
Of equal concern is a Liverpool midfield that is wholly undernourished. You might argue Klopp has never replaced Gini Wijnaldum, who combined industry, mobility and touch. Jordan Henderson, at 32, is rarely a starter.
Liverpool results in 2023
- Brentford 3-1 Liverpool (2 Jan)
- Liverpool 2-2 Wolves (7 Jan)
- Brighton 3-0 Liverpool (14 Jan)
- Wolves 0-1 Liverpool (17 Jan)
- Liverpool 0-0 Chelsea (21 Jan)
- Brighton 2-1 Liverpool (29 Jan)
This leaves Klopp with Naby Keita, who has failed to make the transition from Bundesliga to Premier League, and the callow legs of Stefan Bajcetic, perhaps one rolled-down-socks jockey too many alongside Thiago Alcantara at this stage of the renewal.
Liverpool are not awful, they have simply lost their exceptionalism. Though they led Liverpool would have fallen behind had Evan Ferguson a cooler head when presented with a free shot at goal. He beat Alisson Becker easily enough but picked out Trent Alexander-Arnold at the near post. It was another example of Liverpool’s porous nature, couching up as many chances as they create. Brighton would eventually gain a reward before the break from a poorly defended corner when Lewis Dunk deflected Tariq Lamptey’s errant pile-driver past Allison.
When Klopp sought the winner the call went out to old legs, 37-year-old James Milner considered a better option than Alexander-Arnold, as pure a symbol of Liverpool’s decline as any you could imagine. Alexander-Arnold embodied the bold, raw energy of the heavy metal football that became Klopp’s motif at Borussia Dortmund and the refined attacking version that saw Liverpool claim a sixth Champions League crown in 2019 and eclipse Manchester City in the Premier League the following season.
That team is gone. The return of Diaz, Jota, Firmino and Virgil van Dijk would improve Klopp’s selection here but not restore the lost majesty of the peak Klopp creation. Liverpool sit ninth in the Premier League and are out of both cups. There is no glossing that.
from Football - inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/LlvdSXM
Post a Comment