Premier League 2020/2021

[serghei]

What a performance by Southampton. Only Madrid and Atletico are at the moment capable to deliver such a performance against Liverpool in Spain. Tells you about the difference in quality between EPL and La Liga currently.

 

[Capitan Puyol]

Loserpool, hahaha back to pre-2020 times, oh yeah !

 

[Katarina1]

Liverpool lack that creativity without Coutinho

 

[JamDav1982]

TAA gave away the ball 38 times I think they said.

 

[JamDav1982]

Never seen much of 2nd half but in first Thiago was getting torn to bits trying to play DM.

 

[utility73]

Suddenly looking very good for City again.

 

[Vilarrubi]

City smirking.

 

[Birdy]

TAA gave away the ball 38 times I think they said.

Been pretty bad this season thus far??
Many mistakes at the back, and little sparkle up front.
He should have some competition to improve

 

[JamDav1982]

Suddenly looking very good for City again.

City next 6... Brighton (H), Palace (H), Villa (H), WBA (A), Sheff Utd (H), Burnley (A).

Time for them to put foot on gas.

 

[Capitan Puyol]

What a performance by Southampton. Only Madrid and Atletico are at the moment capable to deliver such a performance against Liverpool in Spain. Tells you about the difference in quality between EPL and La Liga currently.

Wow, then look at Cadiz and Alaves defensive display against RM in Madrid...
La Liga still better than PL, surely.

 

[Katarina1]

City next 6... Brighton (H), Palace (H), Villa (H), WBA (A), Sheff Utd (H), Burnley (A).

Time for them to put foot on gas.

statpadding time

 

[serghei]

Wow, then look at Cadiz and Alaves defensive display against RM in Madrid...
La Liga still better than PL, surely.

Madrid are not Liverpool.

 

[Capitan Puyol]

I think Liverpool is just bad now, not Southampton so good, or Newcastle.

 

[Yannik]

Never seen much of 2nd half but in first Thiago was getting torn to bits trying to play DM.

Opposite for me. I missed the first half, and tuned into 2nd half and Thiago was probably the least frustrating Liverpool player at that point.

 

[serghei]

Liverpool play on the wings too often for Thiago to really make a difference. That's the main difference between Klopp and Pep. Klopp will take the available wing space more often to insist with a) crosses or b) quick combinations between wingers and fullbacks, while Guardiola will usually put more effort into trying to unlock teams centrally, with overloads and short passing schemes and patterns. Klopp's approach vs a team sitting deep is not as much in Thiago's wheelhouse as believed. It's based more on playing into the empty areas fast (which are 99% of the time the wide zones), with quick exchanges, more than on building superiority through slick passing and triangles, in the crowded central channels.

Thiago is a mixed bag so far at Liverpool because the team doesn't give him that much creative license. The approach insists more on Mane, Salah, and their corresponding fullbacks, Robertson and TAA.

In fact, the decline of Liverpool is tied to a drop in fullbacks' and wingers' level. Plus a collective drop in pressing intensity and duration (usually pressing is the first component that is lost in time, and this Liverpool team is in its 3rd season at the top).