Southampton 0-2 Liverpool: In game and Post Match discussion

Can't get ahead of ourselves here. Klopp said it was good, not brilliant. And Soton were poor in the second half. Lot harder challenges coming up. Good win obviously and we certainly needed a boring win as our games were turning into 3 act drama's.

Klopp himself knows the top 4 is going to be very hard. For all the drama against Spurs, it was not lost on Klopp that we had far less possession than them. And in today's first half again we had less possession. So we take nothing for grated, Klopp can't.

We have an even chance with Spurs and Chelsea. United I would say will finish 2nd.

Liverpool are matching City in the form guide.
If the form keeps then Liverpool will finish 2nd.
All to play for.

Liverpool are matching City in the form guide.
If the form keeps then Liverpool will finish 2nd.
All to play for.

Agreed.

If we do make it again to where we were at the end of August, they'll still whinge selling Coutinho "ruined" our title challenge.

Himself had a great Sunday too. A bore home draw against Getafe and hauled off well before the end. Meanwhile we're off on a European tour. The travelling Kop will send him a "wish you were here" postcard, while topping up the tans during the week.

You can see the difference VVD makes. OK it's just his first clean sheet, but he brings leadership, discipline, and organisation that this club has lacked defensively for years and years. Matip has also improved while Robbo wins tackles and 50-50's that Moreno didn't.

61 league goals so far, 34 away is more than everyone else, and more than all the away games Iast year. So we've consolidated our spot in the top 4, and the unfortunate nutjobs have lost their keyboards again, and gone back into hibernation.

Yup selling Coutinho was a master stroke! 🙄 Regardless of how well we are doing, selling Coutinho and not replacing him has weakened the squad. F**k all this "we dont need him" sh*t!
Yes Van Dijk has improved the defense, but but we are weaker in attack than we were. I'm all for positivity, but there's no need to go overboard on how strong our squad is. Matip remains average, and is a worry to me. He doesn't win headers, and is very slow
We won against a side we should be beating.
Job done, keep.going and we'll make it to a top 4 finish. If that's that's the type of thing you celebrate then good for you! 👍

Can't get ahead of ourselves here. Klopp said it was good, not brilliant. And Soton were poor in the second half. Lot harder challenges coming up. Good win obviously and we certainly needed a boring win as our games were turning into 3 act drama's.

Klopp himself knows the top 4 is going to be very hard. For all the drama against Spurs, it was not lost on Klopp that we had far less possession than them. And in today's first half again we had less possession. So we take nothing for grated, Klopp can't.

We have an even chance with Spurs and Chelsea. United I would say will finish 2nd.

Three horse race for second and a four-way go for the minors. Still plenty to do.

If we had more of those types of games we'd be closer to City than we would be to fifth. Weren't great, managed to find the net and the defensive unit held their own at the back.

Would love to see a midfield trio perform equally to a high level, though. Still our biggest for concern for mine as it has been for a long time.

Moussa Dembele put in two performances this past fortnight that outclassed anything I've seen in Red for years. Whack that in our side and I've no doubt we would be much more complete.

Overall a pretty good performance and a vital 3 points.
It was so important to get back on track and put in a solid performance before the Porto game.
Mane is still finding his way into form but showed signs of encouragement, VVD marshaled the back line really well, karius put in a solid performance and pulled off a couple of quality saves.
Clearly there are still holes that need to be addressed but we are moving in the right direction again.

Well done to our lads for a good win 2 fantastic goals and 3 well earned points.Oh and well done RAFA for putting Mourinho and Manure on their arses.

Three horse race for second and a four-way go for the minors. Still plenty to do.

If we had more of those types of games we'd be closer to City than we would be to fifth. Weren't great, managed to find the net and the defensive unit held their own at the back.

Would love to see a midfield trio perform equally to a high level, though. Still our biggest for concern for mine as it has been for a long time.

Moussa Dembele put in two performances this past fortnight that outclassed anything I've seen in Red for years. Whack that in our side and I've no doubt we would be much more complete.

Agree with Dembele was completely dominant against the Arse. Hoping Keita is at least as good.

Thought karius was very assured. He must play champions league surely

Missed the game, was so hammered that I actually may have seen it and don't remember.

Seen the Bobby assist though, have my babies.

Great result yesterday and if I'm honest I had us down to bottle it with this curse we've been under since I can rememeber.

With Spurs winning who then leap frogged us, the mancs losing who we could have made ground on, and then playing against a side you would expect us to beat quite comfortably  and get the three points I thought it would be same old liverpool and we would get beat.

However, it was very impressive. That was the type of performance you would expect from a top team. Confident, in control, disciplined. We needed those three points and the boys delivered.

I was very happy with the starting 11. I've repeatedly said that's the team that I would always go with personally. The only change I'd make is lallana in for Ox when he's fit and ready and then playing against a tougher opponent id consider putting milner in at right back ahead of Trent.

Although he wasn't tested a great deal I thought Karius had another good game and for me, he is a level above Mignolet. I'm not saying Karius is the answer or that he's even a good goalie, I haven't seen him enough to make that judgment yet, but what I do know is I massively prefer him to Mignolet and I'm much more confident with him in goal. I think our defenders might be too.

VVD had another good game too and he is leading the back four like we all hoped he would.

Wijnaldum frustrated me again. I thought he covered a lot of ground yesterday and did some donkey work that goes unnoticed like tracking runs etc, but I just wish he would put his foot on the ball and dictate the play at times. I know there's a player in him but some games he goes missing it's just weird.

Salah and firmino showed their class once more, particularly for that second goal which was just immense. The club needs to sit down with both in the summer and offer whatever they want. We need to keep both of them at all costs otherwise it will be the same old one step forward two back when we sell both to Madrid.

Very good performance from the mighty reds, very mature, very impressive. We desperately needed those points and we've put ourselves in a great position going into the final run of games now.

It's completely in our hands. We will see now what these lads are made of and if they've got any bottle. I've questioned the mentality and bottle of this team many times so I hope they prove me wrong.

Get over the finish line, secure CL again, start again in the summer and really push on for next season. We aren't a million miles away we just need a couple more pieces to complete the jigsaw.

Missed the game, was so hammered that I actually may have seen it and don't remember.

Seen the Bobby assist though, have my babies.

Earned himself a few bob into the bargain.

"Firmino allegedly earns an additional £31,000 per assist, meaning he brought home a total of £116,000 in bonuses against the Saints.

Add this to his pay packet, and the Brazilian made £184,085 for the week. We're going out on a limb here, but we reckon he's had a worse few days."

https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/staggering-amount-money-roberto-firmino-12012131

According to Football Leaks: The Dirty Business of Football, the Brazilian currently earns a basic wage of £68,085-a-week - and a lot more in bonuses.

He allegedly earned £25,000 for each of his first five goals, £45,000 for his goals between six and 10, £65,000 from 11 to 15, and £85,000 from then on.

the most important for me was that defensively we did not look shaky.  I know Southampton are not a top team, but lessor teams have had us rocking at the back recently.

YNWA

the most important for me was that defensively we did not look shaky.  I know Southampton are not a top team, but lessor teams have had us rocking at the back recently.

YNWA

I  think we turned a corner today.

GK was excellent.  Defence was good. Attack sublime.

We closed the game off.

Yup selling Coutinho was a master stroke! 🙄 Regardless of how well we are doing, selling Coutinho and not replacing him has weakened the squad. F**k all this "we dont need him" sh*t!
Yes Van Dijk has improved the defense, but but we are weaker in attack than we were. I'm all for positivity, but there's no need to go overboard on how strong our squad is. Matip remains average, and is a worry to me. He doesn't win headers, and is very slow
We won against a side we should be beating.
Job done, keep.going and we'll make it to a top 4 finish. If that's that's the type of thing you celebrate then good for you! 👍

Give some credit lad, it was a solid performance and a game in which we created far more chances than the score sheet reflects. Could have easily had 4 or 5 if Mane had his shooting boots on Salah tucked away his chances.

I agree that anyone who thinks selling Coutinho hasn't weakened the team is not living in reality, the man is a world class player hence the 140 mil price tag. But he's been pushing for that move since the summer and with this kind of scenario, I don't think the club necessarily did the wrong thing to allow him to move (so long as the money is reinvested in summer of course).

But if we finish top 4, it would have been the first time in 10 years we' do this in back to back seasons and that's a sign of massive improvement under Klopp. Sadly, finishing top 4 brings the players and revenues, hence has become a point of celebration, but  that's the reality of modern football. I won't be happy until we win the league, simple as, but you have to recognize how much we've improved as a team under Klopp.

Early days about the defense but initial signs look very good for me in terms VVD's leadership and organization. In Gomez, Arnold and Robinson, we have very accomplished full backs as well. I think it's just going to get better.

I'm very optimistic about the future. Finish top 4 again and have a decent run in CL, Klopp can attract more quality and we can really push for the league next year.

Give some credit lad, it was a solid performance and a game in which we created far more chances than the score sheet reflects. Could have easily had 4 or 5 if Mane had his shooting boots on Salah tucked away his chances.

I agree that anyone who thinks selling Coutinho hasn't weakened the team is not living in reality, the man is a world class player hence the 140 mil price tag. But he's been pushing for that move since the summer and with this kind of scenario, I don't think the club necessarily did the wrong thing to allow him to move (so long as the money is reinvested in summer of course).

But if we finish top 4, it would have been the first time in 10 years we' do this in back to back seasons and that's a sign of massive improvement under Klopp. Sadly, finishing top 4 brings the players and revenues, hence has become a point of celebration, but  that's the reality of modern football. I won't be happy until we win the league, simple as, but you have to recognize how much we've improved as a team under Klopp.

Early days about the defense but initial signs look very good for me in terms VVD's leadership and organization. In Gomez, Arnold and Robinson, we have very accomplished full backs as well. I think it's just going to get better.

I'm very optimistic about the future. Finish top 4 again and have a decent run in CL, Klopp can attract more quality and we can really push for the league next year.

I'd be a lot more confident if we could get another CB of Van Dijk's ability. I like the look of Robertson, he plays like he has something to prove which is a good attitude to have. AA will definitely improve. It a bit worrying that our smaller guys are left to big up attackers from set pieces though.

I'd be a lot more confident if we could get another CB of Van Dijk's ability. I like the look of Robertson, he plays like he has something to prove which is a good attitude to have. AA will definitely improve. It a bit worrying that our smaller guys are left to big up attackers from set pieces though.

While Robbo might look good going forward, but he has to work on the defensive side of his game. Not a bad defender, not that much to offer in the air. It's an art to stop players in the air.Carra was a master at it, he always walked the line and Robbo has to get that. Know how to knock players in the air but keep it legal. Be very alive to the blind side or players coming in around the back from attacks down TAA's side.

It's almost a trade off by Klopp with Robbo. Klopp knows Robbo isn't quite there defensively yet but he'll take his offensive play. Robbo gets some extra protection from Wijnaldum/Milner. Obviously it's not easy as Robbo is effectively a wing back. Now with VVD setting the standards the others Robbo included have to step it up. Still well worth his place but watch that back post

That Thierry Henry analysis of the Firmino assist was quality, the way he flicked it upwards as well to make sure the defender couldn't block it.

I liked the way we played in the 2nd half. Ok Southampton did not play great, but we defended very well and looked to hit on the counter. I think sitting a bit deeper, defending properly and picking teams off is a good option for us when we are in front, we've got the players to play on the counter and we don't need to go chasing the ball and leaving spaces behind our midfield.

VVD is definitely a step up on what we have had at CB up til now. Our whole back 4 looked a lot more assured than usual - those 4 are undoubtedely our best back 4 in my opinion.

Karius had another decent game, albeit not that much to do.

Only real negative was Ox still struggling. I thought his goal/performance against Citeh would kick him on, but he still seems to be short of confidence.

Other than that, good performance and result, encouraging precisely because it wasn't spectacular and end to end, but just solid and efficient. We know we can do the harem scarem stuff, but that was the type of performance ( particularly 2nd half) we need more of away from home.

Great result thought we looked good in defence VVD looked in command, thought the midfield lacked a bit of creativity, and gave the ball away a lot, solid up front a result we needed, get in

Kind of performance that hasn't been in our locker often. Barely in second gear, dealt with most of what was thrown at us without giving us fans palpatations.

Yup selling Coutinho was a master stroke! 🙄 Regardless of how well we are doing, selling Coutinho and not replacing him has weakened the squad. F**k all this "we dont need him" sh*t!
Yes Van Dijk has improved the defense, but but we are weaker in attack than we were. I'm all for positivity, but there's no need to go overboard on how strong our squad is. Matip remains average, and is a worry to me. He doesn't win headers, and is very slow
We won against a side we should be beating.
Job done, keep.going and we'll make it to a top 4 finish. If that's that's the type of thing you celebrate then good for you! 👍

What are you going to do, drown your sorrows?

I didn't say we didn't need Coutinho. I said how he got on the same day. A really boring game against a side they should be beating, where he was hooked with half an hour to go. That's what he sacrificed European Cup football with us for.

There are plenty of who lose the plot as soon as we drop points. Everybody from Klopp to the kitman is blamed because Lovren sliced a clearance or Karius spilled a ball or Salah missed a sitter. It's outrageous.

As I wrote before the game in the Klopp thread, this was a bogey side we've had lots of problems dealing with down the years, especially away from home. Last year, we didn't even score against them. So the game was a real banana skin, and we were wobbling in the first half at times. But we survived it, scored the second, and saw the game out. I didn't think it was boring, I've seen plenty of games before look boring, then the opposition score and all hell breaks loose. So I took nothing for granted even at 2-0.

This year, the target was to finish top 4, and we're well on course. It's not something to celebrate, the payback is nights like next  Wednesday that many clubs don't have.

Bit late I know!! However just "flicked" back a little way to some stats on amount of pages received post match.
Swansea    lost  pages 22

W/Brom     lost      "     26

Hudds        Won     "     11

Spurs         Draw    "     26

S'ton          Won     "     13.

Mmm !! Seems our followers seem to prefer to whinge/moan than praise the team?
Answers on a post card please.

Bit late I know!! However just "flicked" back a little way to some stats on amount of pages received post match.
Swansea    lost  pages 22

W/Brom     lost      "     26

Hudds        Won     "     11

Spurs         Draw    "     26

S'ton          Won     "     13.

Mmm !! Seems our followers seem to prefer to whinge/moan than praise the team?
Answers on a post card please.

hmmm. you posted that on the 14th page.