Andoni Iraola’s Liverpool did what we all wanted before the second international break and that was take all three points from Selhurst Park by beating a struggling Palace in a fairly comfortable win. With that said it’s time to dig deeper into how the match played out and celebrate the positives whilst also looking to see if there were any negatives.
Winners and Losers
Two Liverpool players stood out from the rest and so we’ll start with them and maybe add another winner.
Alexis Mac Allister : The inform senior midfielder
continues to shine this season and with each great performance from Maca the question over his contract situation gets louder understandably. In today’s game it was once again Maca using his head to score a goal from a set-piece which is quite the achievement for the 5’ 9” Argentinian but it wasn’t just about his goal, it was his overall attitude that made Maca shine.
Following a moment from Victor Munoz, where the ref decided Munoz dived, Maca was the first Red to stand up for him when Palace players where showing their objection to Munoz diving (which seemed uncharacteristic from the young Spaniard). There was concern from this writer that Maca might get drawn into a clash that could turn ugly but it was nice to see him being a senior Red stepping up for another Red.
Throughout the match Maca was full of energy and commitment and even though the score wasn’t close it was a Liverpool performance that spluttered and stalled at times and needed the injection of effort that Maca was all about today. With young Trey Nyoni the only other midfielder showing consistency in his performances it has been a much needed Maca getting back to his best since the 26/27 season got underway.
Alisson Becker : After several poor moments that have led to goals or great chances for opponents in recent weeks the Brazilian keeper made some incredible saves from a handful of Palace efforts. To feel that stability back in Ali’s play was needed at times when Liverpool’s goal was under threat with at least three clear goals being stopped. It was a clean sheet performance which was undone by a very questionable reffing decision that gave Palace a penalty kick which was to be the last kick of the game.
Florian Wirtz : Flo still hasn’t gained the trust of every Liverpool supporter and this writer gets the impression some never will accept him unless he racks up a ridiculous number of assists and goals but in all honesty that’s missing all the nuances Flo’s game brings to Liverpool’s play.
In today’s match Flo got himself an assist and goal in the second half but his play during the first half was also good with some very positive direct passes to feet in dangerous areas and link up play as well his energy to influence the Red’s overall performance.
There really weren’t any obvious losers except Crystal Palace who fought hard and got very close to scoring, until the final play of the game when the ref must have felt he needed to get himself noticed by making a terrible call. That call was rewarding Palace with a penalty when Milos Kerkez’s face was met by a Palace player’s head while both went for the ball in a penalty area scramble.
Dissecting the Narrative
With Liverpool having lost the previous two matches, especially the midweek collapse to Fenerbahce it was important to get a win against bottom of the league Palace (at time of writing this Man U are joint bottom with them) and win they did but not comfortably.
The high intensity and aggressive press were hard to detect throughout the match even though the Reds did start very positively and there’s an argument to be had that maybe Palace didn’t play in a way that required an aggressive press but it was noticeably lacking to this writer.
The second goal from the Reds showed how Bradley Barcola needs to be used if the best is to be seen by him and that was a ball played into the space for Barcola to run onto and produce a low cross which found Wirtz with the room to shoot. This makes the most of Barcola’s pace and pulls defenders towards him which leaves the spaces for other Reds to exploit whilst also making the opponents have to turn and run back to defend and this is what Iraola wanting pacy wingers brings.
How The Players/Manager Reacted
After the win Iraola was asked about the penalty decision.
“I’m really upset with that, I’m really upset because you can see what they are calling in our box penalties, calling in our box and the one’s they are not calling in the other box and I know we are winning three nil in the 95th minute, but I’m very upset.”
“It’s a head to head but even Osorio’s head, after touching the ball, is the one going to Milos’s, not Milos to Osorio, it’s Osorio to Milos. It’s a clash of heads and okay you can say three nil 95th minute nothing happens.”
Iraola went on,
“It happens but for me it’s there is more than this. There is more to this because it’s not the first time a decision, and you compare, I’m really upset yes.”
Through Iraola’s frustrated response it’s easy to see that the various poor officiating decisions, which are mounting up, are getting to him and as with previous managers of Liverpool Iraola is feeling the sense of bias against Liverpool when such moments happen during games. This writer isn’t stirring the conspiracy theories yet when faced with such officiating inconsistencies (of which Liverpool seem to be on the wrong side of) it gets very frustrating and caused big swings in certain matches costing Liverpool possible points.
It’s quite something when realizing we are only 10 games into the season and already Iraola has experienced enough inconsistencies to make him upset. It also helps remind us as Liverpool supporters that a lot of what Iraola is experiencing is new to him like the busy schedule and being head coach of one of the world’s most historic clubs. It really must be quite the adventure as well responsibility for Iraola and the more times the players and supporters can make him realize he has earned this opportunity and is doing well the better.
Giving Credit to the Opponent
Crystal Palace showed heart and really tried to earn at least a point in a desperate attempt to escape the company of ManU at the bottom of the league but with Ali putting in a MotM performance and the Reds being far more efficient with putting away the chances created it wasn’t going to be Palace’s day.
What Happens Next
It’s time for another international break and this writer is hoping the captain of Hungry doesn’t join his fellow countrymen, instead chooses to recover properly by staying behind, but Dominik Szoboszlai is very proud of captaining his country so we will have to wait and see.
Ali will be saved from playing for Brazil and considering his knack for picking up injuries it’s good news for all of us but when it comes to young Rio Ngumoha the thought of him getting some more minutes playing for his country would be nice (just no injury thanks).
After the international break the Reds play their rivals Man U at Anfield and it’s a great chance to pile even more misery on them and perhaps push them back down to the very bottom. After that we are getting closer to the winter transfer window so expect some rumors to begin appearing. YNWA.
