Saturday was a strong defensive performance in our defensive third. However, in our attacking third, Wolves figured out our press after a slow start (highest PPDA of the 6 matches) & we struggled to keep the ball consistently so it wasn't a dominant performance. The attack was poor but, in all of the other matches save Forest, we created & scored >2 np xG ... so chalk that up as a bad day at the office.
While the results have been great, Arne (thankfully) isn't buying into the media hype. At every press conference, he is consistent in mentioning that our opponents to date have been inferior & a bad representation of opponent strength over the entirety of this season. United was the only opponent that finished in the top half last season & we know what a dumpster fire they are currently.
Last season, we pummeled the bottom half, winning 17 of 20 matches (53/60 points). Where you can argue we "lost the league", wasn't against them but rather against Villa, Spurs, Chelsea, United, West Ham & Palace. After the next break, we face a bunch of those sides: Chelsea (H), Arsenal (A), Brighton (H), & Villa (H). Sandwiched between those league matches, we've got 2 tough UCL matches and a tough away at Brighton in the league cup. Following these fixtures, we'll have a true gauge of our potential for this season and the transition to Arne from Jurgen.
Cant believe Ibou was actually lobbying for the MOM award. He was genuinely upset. He was excellent before his moment of madness, but became quite nervous, almost rattled after the error. Then that crucial clearance happened. Would you have given it to him Josh?
It might be worth revisiting this game to understand why it was a bad performance. It did not seem to me that Slot approached the game differently to the previous ones, so my guess is that general tactic can be excluded. Personal was very much what was expected. Fitness seemed to be restored to the usual level as well.
During the game I noticed that our passing in the final third was very rushed. Often Szoboslai and Salah tried to continue a vertical move with one contact even though they had no direct opponent or pressure on the ball. It happened so often that it might have been instructed by the manager. Unfortunately, the majority of these attempts failed.
In the final 20 minutes passing seemed to further degrade in all sections of the team, leading to wild clearances and less combination play. Both concerning given we had scoreboard and time advantage.
I’ve been really happy with the way Slot has started on the job but one thing I’m curious about is why we seem to start all games really slow, like it’s by design from Slot and part of his need for control? I feel it could become a problem now that the games get more difficult and we’re not switched on from the start. The earliest goal we’ve scored was in the 13th minute against Brentford and it was a counter from a corner in an otherwise laboured opening, and overall I think we look pedestrian and slow at the start of most games. Both Bournemouth and WH recently had to score first before we woke up and that shouldn’t be the case, especially not at Anfield. To me the slow starts are the most notable change from Klopp’s time, I always loved how we made it horrible for teams the first 20 minutes of games and I see none of that in Slots approach. If we wanna get Anfield bouncing in the big games I think he has to start going for the jugglar from the first whistle and establish control once you have a result to defend, not at 0-0. What do you think Josh, are the slow starts a potential issue or is he right to be cautious at the start of games?
I think the slow starts stem from taking some time to figure out whether the opposition are playing as expected. Once you work out what’s going on, you can then attack in a certain way to cause the right problems.
Slot mentioned something recently on this. He said after 20 minutes the game tends to calm down and the better side tends to dominate.
Note also that the Konate mistake was unquestionably a foul. Unlikely to be given in this league but also some leeway for Konate - hard to anticipate a player behind you putting both hands on shoulders and physically moving you to one side. In no way is that a legal challenge, nor has it ever been.
A win is always a win Clint Eastwood aka Bob Paisley would be proud. The Good, The Bad and the Ugly. First 20 keep the ball shut that effin lot up and were in. They read the result first in the Pink!
When your Kaching your Self. and your boyz win. The title begins. I wrote it on an FB page and it probably is or isn't relevant. Probability might see that change
Saturday was a strong defensive performance in our defensive third. However, in our attacking third, Wolves figured out our press after a slow start (highest PPDA of the 6 matches) & we struggled to keep the ball consistently so it wasn't a dominant performance. The attack was poor but, in all of the other matches save Forest, we created & scored >2 np xG ... so chalk that up as a bad day at the office.
While the results have been great, Arne (thankfully) isn't buying into the media hype. At every press conference, he is consistent in mentioning that our opponents to date have been inferior & a bad representation of opponent strength over the entirety of this season. United was the only opponent that finished in the top half last season & we know what a dumpster fire they are currently.
Last season, we pummeled the bottom half, winning 17 of 20 matches (53/60 points). Where you can argue we "lost the league", wasn't against them but rather against Villa, Spurs, Chelsea, United, West Ham & Palace. After the next break, we face a bunch of those sides: Chelsea (H), Arsenal (A), Brighton (H), & Villa (H). Sandwiched between those league matches, we've got 2 tough UCL matches and a tough away at Brighton in the league cup. Following these fixtures, we'll have a true gauge of our potential for this season and the transition to Arne from Jurgen.
Cant believe Ibou was actually lobbying for the MOM award. He was genuinely upset. He was excellent before his moment of madness, but became quite nervous, almost rattled after the error. Then that crucial clearance happened. Would you have given it to him Josh?
Virgil better for me. But Ibou was good aside from the random error.
It might be worth revisiting this game to understand why it was a bad performance. It did not seem to me that Slot approached the game differently to the previous ones, so my guess is that general tactic can be excluded. Personal was very much what was expected. Fitness seemed to be restored to the usual level as well.
During the game I noticed that our passing in the final third was very rushed. Often Szoboslai and Salah tried to continue a vertical move with one contact even though they had no direct opponent or pressure on the ball. It happened so often that it might have been instructed by the manager. Unfortunately, the majority of these attempts failed.
In the final 20 minutes passing seemed to further degrade in all sections of the team, leading to wild clearances and less combination play. Both concerning given we had scoreboard and time advantage.
Loved the win, not the performance.
It could be really hard to return to how to win a Football match other than offer Global Entertainment and all the Rocket Science that goes with it
I’ve been really happy with the way Slot has started on the job but one thing I’m curious about is why we seem to start all games really slow, like it’s by design from Slot and part of his need for control? I feel it could become a problem now that the games get more difficult and we’re not switched on from the start. The earliest goal we’ve scored was in the 13th minute against Brentford and it was a counter from a corner in an otherwise laboured opening, and overall I think we look pedestrian and slow at the start of most games. Both Bournemouth and WH recently had to score first before we woke up and that shouldn’t be the case, especially not at Anfield. To me the slow starts are the most notable change from Klopp’s time, I always loved how we made it horrible for teams the first 20 minutes of games and I see none of that in Slots approach. If we wanna get Anfield bouncing in the big games I think he has to start going for the jugglar from the first whistle and establish control once you have a result to defend, not at 0-0. What do you think Josh, are the slow starts a potential issue or is he right to be cautious at the start of games?
I think the slow starts stem from taking some time to figure out whether the opposition are playing as expected. Once you work out what’s going on, you can then attack in a certain way to cause the right problems.
Slot mentioned something recently on this. He said after 20 minutes the game tends to calm down and the better side tends to dominate.
Note also that the Konate mistake was unquestionably a foul. Unlikely to be given in this league but also some leeway for Konate - hard to anticipate a player behind you putting both hands on shoulders and physically moving you to one side. In no way is that a legal challenge, nor has it ever been.
A win is always a win Clint Eastwood aka Bob Paisley would be proud. The Good, The Bad and the Ugly. First 20 keep the ball shut that effin lot up and were in. They read the result first in the Pink!
When your Kaching your Self. and your boyz win. The title begins. I wrote it on an FB page and it probably is or isn't relevant. Probability might see that change