I said at the beginning of the season that the table didn't matter to me. With a new manager, new system, thin squad I've judged things by performances not points.
So I can't say I'm all that upset about the loss today.
The first half was awful. And had it remained that way I would have been very disappointed. I was fine with not starting Sturridge, as having him at the end was more important than having him at the start. I thought the big mistake was starting Allen over Henderson. Allen had a shocker. We could have used Henderson's legs and stability early on. Lucky for us, Danny Welbeck is awful and didn't put away the chances we gifted him.
Fact is, Rodgers made the right moves in the second half and the team responded almost immediately. Sturridge, Suarez and Borini look like a very promising front three. And what a difference it made having three attack-minded players who want to get in front of goal. In the first half, we'd get the ball to the wing and no one would be in the box. In the second half, the box was flooded with black shirts. Sturridge's goal was exactly the kind of goal that has been there all season, we've just lacked the player who makes that run and poaches. More importantly, he and Suarez combined well in limited minutes. It was also great to see Borini ahead of schedule in terms of fitness.
The defense does need to shape up, especially on set pieces. Embarrassing to give up that second goal like that. Evra and Vidic were both left completely open.
Thankfully Howard Webb didn't make any big, game altering decisions, but letting play go on while Reina was injured was pretty bad.
All in all, we should have done better in the first half, but the second half, with the introduction of subs who should be starting going forward, looked promising. So that's how I'm looking at it: a first half that shows there's a lot of work to do and a second half to build on.
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