It’s funny because after a shaky start Liverpool were both dominant and fun to watch, and we all shifted to vaguely wondering where it all went wrong for Spurs in the long view until midway through the second half. This was of course always a little bit of a lie because Tottenham had the better chances of the first half, they were just firmly against scoring them, and Liverpool did score. Sometimes that happens. Scorelines do that, and Liverpool have been the victims of it before.
We wanted a win
of any kind really, and specially a win with no injuries. We got that. We also got some fruitful questions rather than pure confidence, which might be all the better.
Winners and Losers Mixed Reviews
It’s inescapable that Trey Nyoni wins this one. The nineteen-year-old was a sensible head who was largely notable for staying back for security, but who played a number of line-breaking passes throughout. He seemed intelligent beyond his years, and while not faultless, was one who looked very capable of recovering and predicting the spaces he should take up to prevent large gaps in transition. The team looked worse when he left the pitch, and notably so. He was subbed off in the 62nd minute, and from there until Dominik Szoboszlai’s thunderbastard everything felt supremely unsettled. Was he subbed off to prepare for minutes at the weekend? Many have hopes.
No-new-contract Alexis Mac Allister has struck again (pun begrudgingly intended) with a confident opening goal. The Argentine has looked reinvented this season despite another long international summer, and his work here, though bolstered by his sensible young comrade in Nyoni, deserves its roses. Liverpool at times lacked a fully cohesive attack, but the combination of young and experienced pivot — which led to defensive security on the part of Nyoni and added (and real) threat on the part of Mac Allister — was one of the observable positives in a mixed first half.
I will give an honorable mention to Jérémy Jacquet, who came on in the second half and put in another very good defensive showing, including especially the moment where his recovery made me realize, through the sense of calm I got in seeing it was him chasing the man down, that he’s integrated into this side in a very Virgil-like way. To cite the moment live:
On the mixed review side stands Giorgi Mamardashvili. The Georgian could have done with a strong performance, given some shaky ones previously and his general lack of minutes. He started well, and more than anyone else was the reason Liverpool weren’t embarrassed in the opening half (with some credit to Spurs’ dedication to off-target shots). He made a number of really good saves, including the one late on that reacted mid-dive to a deflection. Saves like that are rare, difficult, and speak to the talent of the keeper.
And yet, he was too soft on Tottenham’s goal. There was clever contact on him, and that kind of contact could see goals overturned in VAR contexts depending on who’s in the room, but even then we’d need some theatrics from Mamardashvili. I would expect more strength from a man his size in those moments. If strength isn’t forthcoming, he needs to learn the kind of acting that gets the likes of David De Gea those calls every time of asking. Call attention to the contact and win a free kick or make contact with the ball, there is unfortunately no in between. It would be rude not to finish this without returning to that save, though. It wasn’t his only good save of the game, but it really was something special.
Another mixed item is the Dominik Szoboszlai and Ryan Gravenberch substitution, which changed the game entirely. In the period after these two senior professionals came on, the game looked wide open for Tottenham. Spurs looked liable to take it to pens despite their seeming inability to score, they were the team in control, especially in those central areas. This is frankly not good enough, and the manager should have serious concerns about his and their inability to close spaces and make smart choices on the ball (I do have questions about changing both at once, but do think experience should show here). The Szoboszlai thunderbastard gets these two out of jail. What a goal that was.* I am putting on my Very Serious Mantle though to point out that it was only necessary, only the pressure valve that it was because of the shift in the match with the midfield change that suddenly made an already-won game feel very, very open.
Dissecting the Narrative
We don’t know how to feel about Liverpool yet this season, and this type of game doesn’t really help. This was a mixed bag in the exact way you expect a League Cup game against a struggling side to be, especially when you see 10 changes. One thing I do want to highlight in terms of what this team can do under a new manager is that this game showed the side’s willingness to fix problems as an entire squad.
After conceding too easily to start the season, in the following game Florian Wirtz showed himself eager to take a yellow to stop an attack. This was encouraging; it showed an individual and perhaps therefore a team learning from its mistakes quickly.
This fix was even more apparent in this match, and it was clear that the message was received when it came to the approach. Andoni Iraola wants his Liverpool side to gamble, but this necessarily means more awareness: more brains being attuned to danger. The Reds did concede a seriously good chance in transition in the first half (which Mohammed Kudus inexplicably skied), but in their defense the initial passing combination by Spurs felt quite fortunate. On most other occasions the entire team was alert to the needed foul, and stopped the counter attack before they could be harmed. That this was the case whether the player in question be Alexis Mac Allister or James McConnell feels crucial: Liverpool have a relatively thin squad, and seeing such wholesale awareness of the project even in the opening five matches feels important. Players are fixing early team mistakes, and are doing so as a cohesive unit.
Honors obviously go to Ronald Araújo, though. If you’re going to get the first yellow for one of these you should always really go for it.
Moment of the Game
These fixtures are meant for joy more than anything else given that they’re League Cup games where the manager has made 10 changes. It should be a bit ugly at times, and thus there’s no need to take them too seriously even if we’re living in uncertain times re: whether this Liverpool side are good enough in a broader sense.
For a long time I was waffling between moments but this has to go to the Cody Gakpo Assist Knee Slide Celebration because if that wasn’t pure joy I don’t know what it was.* That goal was among the most unreasonable “my god he’s going to score here” before he even took his first touch goals there will ever be, but here we are. You know what’s happening before it plays out in front of you. A strike so good Spurs fans online took a moment to relish it. Take a bow, Dominik Szoboszlai. We’ll do the celebrating for you, mate.
*I prefer to think the celebration was for the goal’s pure brillance but I do allow space for Gakpo being (1) dead confident his bud Dom would score on the volley from there, and thus (2) celebrating a solid goal-assist appearance after injury.
