Liverpool are out of the Champions League as PSG showed them that being the best in England might not be worth much.
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First, some schadenfreude Another one of those famous Anfield nights…
Chris, NUFC
…If it means more when you win does it mean more when you lose?
I hope so.
Will (PSG away fans outsang Anfield all night)
Where it went wrong for Liverpool
Tonight is a very stark highlight of where this team needs to improve. Darwin is simply not smart enough to play for Liverpool, Diaz looks talented but actually does very little with the ball for the positions he gets into. The two of them are the priority to upgrade and replace this summer and I think it could make us a very dangerous outfit next season across all the competitions.
Credit to PSG who were probably the better team over the two legs in my opinion. It’s a shame though because before they scored tonight we had three huge chances. If one goes in that it’s 2-0 on aggregate and I think we can coast through and win it.
I thought Mo looked much better tonight but Nuno Mendes completely had him most of the night sadly. Mo was actively avoiding taking him on and looking for passes which he often made quite poorly today. Trent was guilty of giving it away too much and often in sketchy positions. Who knows with that ankle but the next time anyone might see him is in a Madrid shirt. His head has been there since January.
Slot made us look much better in the second half but I think he also got lost in the game; he made his subs too late and didn’t see Diaz should’ve come off by the 70th minute.
Onto the next one but without a fit right back from the looks of it and maybe playing the 5th choice centre back…Liverpool never like to do it the easy way.
Minty, LFC
READ: Liverpool pay penalty as Donnarumma decisively wins battle of the keepers rematch with Alisson
…When the opposition manager (Luis Enrique) says “Either of the two teams could have gone through. We both deserved to go through but we [PSG] deserved it slightly more, especially in the first game” you know you haven’t embarrassed yourself and the tie wasn’t cut+dry. So many what-if chances for both teams. Beating the league champions of Germany and Spain, and bloodying the nose of the champions of France, suggests this LFC are better than the online trolls are trying to make out (and indeed, the league overall), but do rightly confirm that after 7 months in charge and no money spent Slot has not made them the best side in Europe. Just the best side in England.
Ahead of the League Cup final, it’s obviously less than ideal to now be without both right-backs, and having played 120+ mins when Newcastle already had a day more to rest, but if anything I would hope the frustration in the side after PSG might be empowering. So too the return of Gakpo.
It’ll be a big summer for Liverpool, especially with the videos doing the rounds of the PSG execs trying to tap up VVD after the game, which is understandable and a problem entirely of the club’s making.
I’d be inclined to keep Robbo rather than Kostas, for the home-grown eligibility, and that he can put in good performances and has the league-winner mentality. Darwin and Kelleher are on their way and you’d hope their sale could bring in sufficient funds for a full-back and a centre-half. I would want to keep Gomez but his injury record effectively means the difference between his going or staying is nominal.
The eternal optimist in me hopes that Bajcetic can come back and do a Gravenberch, and I’d want the club to keep Elliot in the squad. Retaining all of Jota, Diaz and Gakpo should mean the left hand side is comfortably sorted for options. That then basically means throw all your money at a forward who can play as either striker or out wide on the right. And there should be plenty in the kitty to cover it?
Final point on the refereeing in the champions league in this round. LFC had what I feel are a number of legitimate complaints; PSG obviously did in the last fixture. It looks like at least every tie has players complaining. And there’s rumours PSG were offside in the buildup too, which is funny about automated offsides apparently being perfect. So a) can we put to bed the outright shite that English refs are worse than the European average, when the best of Europe still can’t ref a game without controversy and b) can we acknowledge and celebrate when the managers of both sides in LFC – PSG just spoke about what a brilliant game it was, and acknowledged that whilst both sides were great, it was also the shortcomings of both sides that made it an effective tie.
Given their petro-state backing I’m never going to cheer for PSG, but there were enough outstanding players on the field yesterday that I wouldn’t begrudge any of them lifting the trophy.
Tom G
Reffing good
A word for Istvan Kovacs, the Romanian referee in tonight’s Liverpool v PSG game… I thought he was excellent. Perhaps made a couple of very minor errors but was, on the whole, spot on. Didn’t fall for theatrics. Didn’t take centre stage. Just refereed the game with minimal fuss.
Please take note most, if not all, PL refs.
Gary AVFC, Oxford
…A cracking game of football. One main point that helped is the high standard of refereeing allowing the game to flow and preventing LiVARpool getting free kicks/penalties with their irritating diving tactics.
Well done PSG, a deserved victory over the two legs.
Chris, Croydon
Salah > Henry? Behave
To the young man who claimed that Mo Salah is better than Thierry Henry, ask him to watch Salah’s utterly anonymous performances against PSG across both legs and then head over to YouTube and watch Henry ripping Real Madrid, Inter, and Juventus to shreds.
Let’s never attempt that comparison again.
Keith B
More on Arsenal injuries
Howard (they were never getting 90+) Jones asked for help from the fanbase so here goes. I want to make it very clear, and I’ve written in a number of times, we do have a serious problem playing in transition and against low blocks. This problem exists with or without the injury to Saka but:
“In those 16 games. Arsenal failed to win 8 of them, 6 draws and 2 defeats”.
In those 16 games (note, Saka was out for Bournemouth but I’ll just add it in) we also lost:
Ben White – 7
Odegaard – 7
Last season of those 3 we missed only 3 (Saka), 2 (Odegaard) and 1 (Ben White). So our entire right side that played almost all of last season together , responsible for 25, 18 and 8 goal contributions last season for a total of 51 goal contributions, about 56% of our total goals, only played 3 games together in those first 16 games. Throw in Tomiyasu & Calafiori (moving Timber) injuries and the right side has seriously struggled with consistency. Saka is amazing, but his supporting cast on that side makes him another tier.
Of those 16 games, we played: Away: City, Spurs, Newcastle, Chelsea, Fulham, Villa, Bournemouth, West Ham
Home: Brighton, Wolves, Leicester, Southampton, Liverpool, Forrest, United, Everton
Surely even neutral fans can see that’s one hell of an opening away games fixture list. We were 30 seconds from a W at the Etihad, in those games we played against City, Brighton and Bournemouth with 10 men for large stretches of the game. I don’t think we had a settled back 4 for the first 16 games due to various injuries.
There’s plenty of mitigating circumstances and context why Arsenal haven’t properly challenged for the title this season. Arteta’s tactics aren’t working, we have had lots of injuries in lots of different positions for prolonged periods of time. We have gotten stupid (ref and player) cards. Liverpool have been brilliant and Salah is having one of the best seasons ever.
Having Saka is good but he is just one man amongst 11. Arteta is a systems manager, for better and for worse, but with so many injuries his system has broken. He has done ok with the circumstances.
Hope that helps!
Rob A (why is it so hard to say both Liverpool are brilliant and Arsenal have had lots of injuries) AFC
Erm…
I have had enough of Arsenal supporters claiming injury’s have derailed their title challenge. Do me a favour. After 13 games (a third of the season) Liverpool were 9 points clear of Arsenal. 9 points, and that’s before all the injury’s ! Title winners only lose a few games a season therefore to claw back 9 points is very difficult. As a Liverpool fan I was more concerned of Chelsea at one point as they got within 2 points! So sorry to tell you this Arsenal fans but 9 points behind without all the injury’s is not in a race.
Manchester Utd have spent more days as league leaders than Arsenal this season!
Paul – London Red
Fixing Arsenal
Are injuries the only reason Arsenal didn’t win the league? You can make an argument. But I won’t.
Instead I want to talk about what I think Arsenal could do to win the league. Despite all the mocking (from myself as well) Arsenal really aren’t far away from a title. However I think people are wrong about what they need to do.
The repeated (and tired) narrative is they didn’t buy a striker and they need a striker, doesn’t anybody realise they need a striker? I don’t think this is true. What you really need…is a goalscoring left winger/forward.
Havertz takes a lot of heat for not scoring enough and being a poor finisher but I don’t think that’s his job anyway. I don’t watch Arsenal much so maybe I’m wrong but I think Havertz is job is (or should be if it isn’t currently) to be a combination of a false 9 and a pressing forward EXACTLY like what Bobby used to do for Liverpool. His skill set suits this incredibly well. And him playing this role will open space for the wingers.
Currently Aaka does this insanely well, the problem though is he’s the only one who does it well. Arsenal fans may like Martinelli and Trossard (I’m a Trossard fan) but they are not goal scoring wide forwards. I think if you put Gakpo (for example) in that Arsenal team…they win a title. The reason they struggle against some smaller teams is because Saka can’t do it all alone but he often has to.
You don’t need Sesko, Isak or any other real striker and I’d argue getting that striker will completely change the way your front line plays and until they get used to it you’ll likely not win the title next year either. I’d argue Gordon, Gakpo, Leao or someone else similar who’s primary focus is cutting in and scoring, would give you a title.
Arsenal fans feel free to tell me how wrong I am (but I’m right)
Lee
Send in the clowns
Yep, looks like a Big Top. Fortunately, we already have a team of clowns and Amorim at the wheel of the clown car where the wheels regularly fall off.
Joe (Man Utd fan) along with 3462 others I suspect
…Someone’s taken too much acid and spliced a circus tent with a building from The Jetsons.
Dear lord.
MDE, MUFC & BRFC
…Before anyone gets too excited about Manchester United’s new stadium, is anyone willing to offer me odds about it ever getting built? I’ll wager it doesn’t.
It may be Sir Jim’s wet dream of a new home, but I have no doubt he’s not willing to commit any of his own money, and I can’t see his American friends dipping into their pockets either.
It’s a nice attempt to guilt the government into investing on his team’s behalf, but don’t for one minute think it will happen.
Uncle Albert (you can save this and remind me how it’s going in 5 years…)
