Another Liverpool European night: 3 things we learned

Liverpool and PSG played an offensive cracker of a match at Anfield, with goals abound on both sides. Here are the important pieces from this riveting match.

In an enticing Champions League match-up between two European giants, it was the home side Liverpool who walked away with the three points in Group C over PSG. While Roberto Firmino’s last-gasp winner was the difference maker, let’s dive into the storylines that helped set up that final moment.

Cross-ing your heart: Liverpool fullbacks dangerous

Daniel Sturridge lacked some of the attacking sharpness and defensive work of Roberto Firmino while on the pitch, but he was perfectly placed for several high-quality crosses from Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andrew Robertson. A deflection had the ball drop to Robertson’s feet in the first half, and a beautifully lofted cross found Sturridge’s head to break open the scoring.

Sturridge could easily have had a second from another free header to open the second half, with Alexander-Arnold driving in a diagonal cross from the right wing that found Sturridge on a free header. With more power on it, he would’ve bagged a brace. Alexander-Arnold could have had a goal himself, hitting the woodwork on a dangerous free kick near the end of the game.

Liverpool needed their young fullbacks at their best crossing the ball, as their talisman was off. Mo Salah was incredibly poor, misplacing several passes including the one that directly led to Kylian Mbappe’s equalizer in the 83rd minute. Roberto Firmino only played a quarter of the game as he was still recovering from the eye injury sustained against Tottenham over the weekend, but it was his individual brilliance that sealed the game at the death.

On the defensive side of things for Robertson and Alexander-Arnold, Neymar and Angel Di Maria were relatively quiet most of the night (barring a controversial offside that would have put Neymar through in a one-on-one). Jurgen Klopp changed his philosophy last fall to only have one fullback forward at a time, and that has helped the squad’s former defensive frailties. Both goals were due to individual errors rather than structural issues.

Robertson was at fault for Thomas Meunier’s goal in the 40th minute, deflecting a ball poorly so it fell right to Meunier, but he turned in another brilliant performance overall. If he and Trent Alexander-Arnold can continue playing with the all-around quality they did this match, Liverpool will be set at fullback for years to come.

PSG have a midfield (and left back) problem

As was prefaced in the build-up to the match, PSG manager Thomas Tuchel has a dearth of midfielders in his squad. He decided to start the game with Adrien Rabiot and converted center back Marquinhos anchoring the midfield. Again.

The 4-2-3-1 lineup Tuchel started with was the same that he utilized in a 4-2 win with freshly promoted Nimes at the start of the month, save switching out Stanley N’Soki for Juan Bernat at fullback. Nimes may have lost, but they found more room than should be expected in the midfield against the Ligue 1 leaders.

Liverpool, to put it mildly, is not a freshly promoted Ligue 1 side. With Gini Wijnaldum, Jordan Henderson, and assist record holder James Milner in the middle, Liverpool dominated the game and made it extremely difficult for any bit of playmaking to come from the Parisian midfield. Several breaks were started by Henderson or Milner winning the ball off of Rabiot and Marquinhos, both looking rather uncomfortable at points on the ball.

The other notable hole in the PSG lineup, left back, was another point of consternation for fans coming into the match. Instead of going with the teenager N’Soki or Thilo Kehrer, Tuchel elected to start summer arrival Juan Bernat.

In only his second match for PSG, Bernat was handed a stern challenge in stopping the vaunted Liverpool attack. An ill-timed challenge on Wijnaldum did not endear him to his new fans, as it earned Wijnaldum a penalty and helped Liverpool open up a 2-0 lead.

Jurgen Klopp is nearing the zenith of his experiment at Liverpool. Thomas Tuchel is just beginning his own experiment at PSG. He deserves time to put his image into reality, but the issues in the midfield and at left back need to be fixed for PSG to be European challengers.

Roberto Firmino the one-eyed hero

It would be remiss to talk about this game without throwing metaphorical roses at Firmino’s feet. The Brazilian played only 20 minutes roughly, yet he was the difference-maker for the game.

After news came out that his eye injury would have no lasting long-term damage, Liverpool fans were hoping to see their Bobby on the pitch. They finally got their wish nearing the 70th minute, and Firmino granted their every daydream with his sublime finish at the death. He celebrated, as per usual, with a timely, humorous choice.

https://twitter.com/FootballFactly/status/1042156181358227456

Liverpool is most dangerous when their gegenpressing is on point, and that requires Roberto Firmino to be on the pitch. Daniel Sturridge and the rest of the backup striking options for Liverpool are not able to replicate the sheer defensive work rate Firmino puts in.

The other hero worth mentioning for Liverpool is James Milner. The aged wonder won the tackle to set up Firmino’s finish, while also putting in a challenge near the end on Mbappe that stopped a dangerous attack. That’s not even mentioning the first half tackle on Neymar that won applause from the home crowd.

For all the flashiness of Salah and Mane on the wings, it is the grittiness in the middle of Roberto Firmino and James Milner that got Liverpool the three points today.