Chelsea 1-1 Liverpool - In game and Post Match discussion

This is the new era of LFCREDS, knee jerk reactions is what we do now

  How the fcuk did I miss that one.  👏👏👏

Way too open in first half, stemmed it a bit and was a bit of a stalemate in the second.

Point will do, thought Elliot was superb when he came on though. Unsure on Gakpo in midfield though.

Draw feels ok all things considered; however, if we don’t get Caceido or Lavia because of these plastic bitches and their rule flaunting spending, it’s not going to feel as ok. They appear to be on the mend from last year, if they get Caicedo or Lavia or both, they could become a problem. If we get one or the other or both, then we will be a problem to the rest of the league.

So how long does this transfer saga drag on…….

Yep - get a Lavia or Caicedo in there and it changes the whole outlook of the middle

I think MacAllister can work there against the lesser lights of the league

Gotta love your optimism that DM will solve the problems, untill we drop back 5 yards or so defensively nobody is going to sort out the problem

Happy to get out with the draw in the end and would have taken that before the game. Excellent debuts for the two new lads. Clearly the structure of our midfield meant we struggled to really keep hold of the ball. Not sure about the inverted full backs approach with this personnel group, it was rather easy to play against and Robbo looks uncomfortable.

Good point.

Now let’s get a couple more players in quickly.

We were never going to win the league so it’s top 4 and therefore a point here is good

This is why we need a “number six”. McAllister is not suited for a deeper role. Gakpo should be playing upfront instead of Jota (a squad player at best). Diaz should do more defensively but we still have the same defensive problems we had from last season.

Positives are that Mcallister and Sobozlai look way better than Fabinho, Henderson and Keita.

‘Jota a squad player at best’

This confirms you know nothing

Because when City are in the league every game is a must win if you want to challenge them. Look at how perfect Arsenal were during the first half of the season and still lost the league.

we wont win league if you remove city and arsenal,not invested anywhere near enough in middle,with lavia another development player

Thought Elliott did OK when he came on today. And Doak.

There's some positives there today to go with the negatives. Rather look at the positives and move forward now.

‘Jota a squad player at best’

This confirms you know nothing

He actually made a couple of valid points but obviously not his remarks about Jota. However, says you he states Gomez is world class.   

Every game is a must win game. I agree. Otherwise what’s the point?

However, after that performance we  probably need to look on that as a point won, rather than two lost. Chelsea played very well 2nd half and although we looked easy to play through/around the lads kept them out. Credit (up to a point) where its due.

My feeling was that we were back to last season where the defence had no confidence in their midfield protection and felt exposed. Obvious reasons! Anxious moments saved by Ali and some good last ditch defending.

I would have kept Mo on alongside Darwin as a central 2, to give their CBs a problem, call me old fashioned! However Mo can have few issues with being subbed, he seemed over-casual I thought.

Well done reds, we go on with a difficult fixture ‘managed’ in tricky circumstances. Get Lavia or Amrabat in if Caicedo dowsnt want us, and we’re a title contender, otherwise, its a transition season and we’ll need to be patient.
Again.

YNWA

True. 

I understand Salah's frustration. He was not given proper support.

Diaz, for me, is not impactful enough. He is jogging most of the time, no urgency, he does not dribble 1V1 like he can. Jota needs service, and today there was none. Jota, is not a player who will score by running behind defenders after a through ball. I don't blame him.

He only went and scored our goal. That not impactful enough these days?

No surprise at all that the energy levels dropped after half time, might be the case for the foreseeable future as well. Only Alisson could be considered match fit at this stage. All those needless, pointless, disruptive subs during pre season, depriving regulars of much needed 90 minute fitness, (over some players who will never play a competitive game for us this year if ever) started to show. 

Sad that Salah couldn't keep up his opening day record, (and yes it was the right decision) but we did preserve our unbeaten league record there, which now stretches to 5 years. When I spent most of my early years seeing us lose there every year, you can never say no to a point there these days. Unfortunately we're trying to compete with a  bunch of cheats that don't drop points at all, therefore most will see this result as the glass empty rather than full.

The game went how i thought it would. We looked good going forward, especially in the first half, but defensively we are a mess and the lack of investment in midfield is there for all to see.

Ali didn’t put a foot wrong.

I thought both full backs were poor. Robertson in particular had a torrid time down that left side.

I’m not convinced with either konate or Virgil either. Virgil isn’t the player he was and Konate switches off and loses concentration far too often, at times his positioning is all over the place.

That said, they have zero protection and they’re too exposed. Put a proper DM in front of them and they’re bound to improve and be more solid.

I thought the two new lads in midfield had good debuts. Both very comfortable and tidy on the ball. Occasionally ran a little ragged but again, put a proper DM alongside them so they can focus on playing football and there is potential there.

Thought Gakpo was a ghost. I honestly don’t get the hype with him. In fairness, he was played out of position but I can’t help but compare him to previous attackers we’ve had and he isn’t on their level for me. Still too early to write him off but I haven’t seen anything from him to suggest he’s good enough for us yet.

Diaz was Diaz. He has little five minute bursts where he’s unplayable and then you won’t see him for half an hour. Very frustrating player. He has all the talent in the world but needs to find consistency and ways to be constantly involved in the game.

Thought Jota was quiet today and I’d have hooked him earlier for Nunez myself but he’s still a nuisance and causes problems for defenders and creates space with his movement. 

Thought salah was excellent in the first half and went quiet in the second when we lost control of the game. Still madness subbing him though. The game changed towards the end and we were getting half chances and he’s the one player you want on the pitch.

Jones and Doak didn’t do anything for me. Thought Nunez made a bit of an impact and so did Harvey Elliott who I thought was superb when he came on.

All in all a draw was a fair result although I did think they were there for the taking and we could have gone for all 3. Only time will tell if it’s a good point or not. If Chelsea are up there this season then it’ll turn out to be a good one.

There were far too many gaps in the midfield and stating the obvious but we desperately need a defensive midfielder or we are going to ship so many goals this season.

Defensive midfielder or not, you can’t beat the system and as usual that’s what we were up against today.

Fernandez thrusts his head in Jota’s direction and somehow escapes a red card and we end up with our number 20 getting booked. A clear cut penalty for handball gets turned down. And almost every single decision going in Chelsea’s favour.

I know it’s expected with Taylor in charge but two huge decisions that he got totally wrong. And I’m not looking for excuses as to why we only got a draw but those two decisions go the way they should and it’s a completely different game.

My take on our players;

Alisson didn’t have a lot to do, despite Chelsea having more than enough good chances. One big save from Jackson after Trent’s abysmal pass in their half but other than that very little. Maybe could of come off his line earlier for the goal to smother it rather than going with his feet.

Alexander-Arnold had glimpses of both his good and bad today. Some good touches, especially the pass that led to Salah’s offside goal and some good defensive covering. But also some very sloppy play with the ball and caught out of position at times.

Konate was comfortably man of the match for me. Was an absolute tank for most of the game. Looked the best he has for a while.

Van Dijk was still making the same errors as last year and allowing the opposition to get to the ball first and dropping off them by a few good feet rather than being aggressive in the tackle and putting the fear of god into them.

Robertson was left completely exposed for most of the game with neither Gakpo or Diaz offering any sort of help. Didn’t cover himself in glory either but constantly two, if not three, against one leaves him fighting a losing battle.

Szoboszlai looked bright early on with one fantastic run where he went past three or four of them and Jota then missed the target but the longer the game went on the less effective he became. Looked alright in possession but out of it looked a bit lost.

Mac Allister put in a decent enough showing in a position that isn’t his best. A bit like Dom though, good in possession and not great without it. The more we have of the ball the better these two will be.

Gakpo was a passenger for his time on the pitch. Very poor showing. I admit I said earlier in the summer that he could be an option in the middle of the park but not after today’s performance.

Salah throwing a wobbly when brought off was about all he did do in the second half. First half hour or so he was unplayable though. That was Mo close to his best. What a ball for Diaz’s goal. Could of had a couple himself as well.

Jota didn’t seem himself today. Didn’t seem like anything he tried actually come off. I’m always a fan of him through the middle rather than out wide but today he didn’t offer us much.

Diaz like most of the team looked F***ing boss early on and was putting a smile on our faces with his play but as the game wore on his effectiveness on the game waned.

Jones tried as he always does and seemed to give some cover to Robbo. Not a lot of note otherwise.

Nunez tried as he always does and put himself about. His energy seemed to lift the whole team. Would start him ahead of Jota next time out.

Doak was good to see the young lad come on but while Klopp may trust him the other players certainly didn’t. Was a couple of times he was free and we looked for more experienced players who were in much more difficult positions.

Elliott ran around and harried them in a way our midfield hasn’t done for a while. Highly unlikely he gets into our best XI on ability alone so he’s going to have to prove his worth with those sort hustle and bustle performances but I’ve said on here previously that I think he does the donkey work better than he does with the ball.

Overall we looked breathtaking at times with the ball and still a shambles at the back.

Draw probably a fair result and something to build on going forward. We’re not gonna change how we play so going forward we’ll just have to hope we can make more of the possession we have than we did today and can be more clinical in front of goal. But whoever we sign isn’t going to make us defensively solid because we don’t set up that way.

Defensive midfielder or not, you can’t beat the system and as usual that’s what we were up against today.

Fernandez thrusts his head in Jota’s direction and somehow escapes a red card and we end up with our number 20 getting booked. A clear cut penalty for handball gets turned down. And almost every single decision going in Chelsea’s favour.

I know it’s expected with Taylor in charge but two huge decisions that he got totally wrong. And I’m not looking for excuses as to why we only got a draw but those two decisions go the way they should and it’s a completely different game.

My take on our players;

Alisson didn’t have a lot to do, despite Chelsea having more than enough good chances. One big save from Jackson after Trent’s abysmal pass in their half but other than that very little. Maybe could of come off his line earlier for the goal to smother it rather than going with his feet.

Alexander-Arnold had glimpses of both his good and bad today. Some good touches, especially the pass that led to Salah’s offside goal and some good defensive covering. But also some very sloppy play with the ball and caught out of position at times.

Konate was comfortably man of the match for me. Was an absolute tank for most of the game. Looked the best he has for a while.

Van Dijk was still making the same errors as last year and allowing the opposition to get to the ball first and dropping off them by a few good feet rather than being aggressive in the tackle and putting the fear of god into them.

Robertson was left completely exposed for most of the game with neither Gakpo or Diaz offering any sort of help. Didn’t cover himself in glory either but constantly two, if not three, against one leaves him fighting a losing battle.

Szoboszlai looked bright early on with one fantastic run where he went past three or four of them and Jota then missed the target but the longer the game went on the less effective he became. Looked alright in possession but out of it looked a bit lost.

Mac Allister put in a decent enough showing in a position that isn’t his best. A bit like Dom though, good in possession and not great without it. The more we have of the ball the better these two will be.

Gakpo was a passenger for his time on the pitch. Very poor showing. I admit I said earlier in the summer that he could be an option in the middle of the park but not after today’s performance.

Salah throwing a wobbly when brought off was about all he did do in the second half. First half hour or so he was unplayable though. That was Mo close to his best. What a ball for Diaz’s goal. Could of had a couple himself as well.

Jota didn’t seem himself today. Didn’t seem like anything he tried actually come off. I’m always a fan of him through the middle rather than out wide but today he didn’t offer us much.

Diaz like most of the team looked F***ing boss early on and was putting a smile on our faces with his play but as the game wore on his effectiveness on the game waned.

Jones tried as he always does and seemed to give some cover to Robbo. Not a lot of note otherwise.

Nunez tried as he always does and put himself about. His energy seemed to lift the whole team. Would start him ahead of Jota next time out.

Doak was good to see the young lad come on but while Klopp may trust him the other players certainly didn’t. Was a couple of times he was free and we looked for more experienced players who were in much more difficult positions.

Elliott ran around and harried them in a way our midfield hasn’t done for a while. Highly unlikely he gets into our best XI on ability alone so he’s going to have to prove his worth with those sort hustle and bustle performances but I’ve said on here previously that I think he does the donkey work better than he does with the ball.

Overall we looked breathtaking at times with the ball and still a shambles at the back.

Draw probably a fair result and something to build on going forward. We’re not gonna change how we play so going forward we’ll just have to hope we can make more of the possession we have than we did today and can be more clinical in front of goal. But whoever we sign isn’t going to make us defensively solid because we don’t set up that way.

As always, you're spot on.

Take this point and move forward. We will be fine because there were signs of more to come.

We need to free Alexis and Dominik by buying DCM.

We took it badly, the VAR rightly disallowing Salah's goal and they took it as a wake up call.

And in unsurprising news

https://x.com/mirrorfootball/status/1690760264688234497?s=46&t=_4uI6CiVRqge8WqM7F37Iw


Let’s see if the Prem stick to their word

The game went how i thought it would. We looked good going forward, especially in the first half, but defensively we are a mess and the lack of investment in midfield is there for all to see.

Ali didn’t put a foot wrong.

I thought both full backs were poor. Robertson in particular had a torrid time down that left side.

I’m not convinced with either konate or Virgil either. Virgil isn’t the player he was and Konate switches off and loses concentration far too often, at times his positioning is all over the place.

That said, they have zero protection and they’re too exposed. Put a proper DM in front of them and they’re bound to improve and be more solid.

I thought the two new lads in midfield had good debuts. Both very comfortable and tidy on the ball. Occasionally ran a little ragged but again, put a proper DM alongside them so they can focus on playing football and there is potential there.

Thought Gakpo was a ghost. I honestly don’t get the hype with him. In fairness, he was played out of position but I can’t help but compare him to previous attackers we’ve had and he isn’t on their level for me. Still too early to write him off but I haven’t seen anything from him to suggest he’s good enough for us yet.

Diaz was Diaz. He has little five minute bursts where he’s unplayable and then you won’t see him for half an hour. Very frustrating player. He has all the talent in the world but needs to find consistency and ways to be constantly involved in the game.

Thought Jota was quiet today and I’d have hooked him earlier for Nunez myself but he’s still a nuisance and causes problems for defenders and creates space with his movement. 

Jones and Doak didn’t do anything for me. Thought Nunez made a bit of an impact and so did Harvey Elliott who I thought was superb when he came on.

All in all a draw was a fair result although I did think they were there for the taking and we could have gone for all 3. Only time will tell if it’s a good point or not. If Chelsea are up there this season then it’ll turn out to be a good one.

There were far too many gaps in the midfield and stating the obvious but we desperately need a defensive midfielder or we are going to ship so many goals this season.

We're 12 games unbeaten. If our new club captain is crap these days, why are all these opponents not beating us then? VVD is first choice centre back for a reason, and it's a toss of a coin between Matip and Konate for the other spot, as it has been for years and will be for the foreseeable.

When we lost VVD for that season, the flood gates opened, as it would if we got rid of him now. We know where the issues are, we tried this week to do something about them, but for reasons beyond our control, nothing was done.

Considering only 1 player out there had a 90 minute game in pre season, and none of the back four had enough game time to be ready for today, then another point down there is a positive result  in the circumstances.

Started off well, not sure how we lost the momentum, but under the cosh a bit, especially the second half.
Good goal scored, scrappy one conceded and a clear pen not given.
At least we held out and got a point.
Expected more to be honest.
Ali my motm for two or three vital stops.
For all Trent brings to the midfield, we need that RB hole filling, and we miss his diagonal balls and crosses.
Not sure when we play next, but need a d mid in before. It won’t fix our back four, but it might stem the flow.
Subs sparked a bit of life into it, and almost made the difference. Well done to them.

Probably a fair result, although an issue for me is our recurring collective inability to sustain pressure. We play with energy and aggression for 20/30 minutes then, as if a someone hits a switch, we drop down the gears and start treading water. We saw it last season and many put it down to fatigue. To be successful you've got to keep going, playing through the pain barrier, fighting that urge to slow up by taking your foot off the gas. If we could have maintained the effort, for even an hour, we win that game. A point at Stamford bridge is never a disaster, but I'm not convinced this Chelsea side are anything special. By dropping off we gave them an invitation to attack instead of defend.
It's hard work winning any premier league match, but if we want to win the league then we'll have to fight like hell for it....Like City will do.

https://x.com/anfieldagenda/status/1690768147207393280?s=46&t=_4uI6CiVRqge8WqM7F37Iw


I wonder how many people watch him just to laugh at him

Uncle Fester the Human thumb

And some even thought he was a reliable source 😂😂😂😂

We had a great chance to win it at the end due to that mistake by Sanchez.

We're 12 games unbeaten. If our new club captain is crap these days, why are all these opponents not beating us then? VVD is first choice centre back for a reason, and it's a toss of a coin between Matip and Konate for the other spot, as it has been for years and will be for the foreseeable.

When we lost VVD for that season, the flood gates opened, as it would if we got rid of him now. We know where the issues are, we tried this week to do something about them, but for reasons beyond our control, nothing was done.

Considering only 1 player out there had a 90 minute game in pre season, and none of the back four had enough game time to be ready for today, then another point down there is a positive result  in the circumstances.

Toss up between Matip and Ibou? It isn't really is it Ibou will always be no 1 and I would say the best defender we have

We're 12 games unbeaten. If our new club captain is crap these days, why are all these opponents not beating us then? VVD is first choice centre back for a reason, and it's a toss of a coin between Matip and Konate for the other spot, as it has been for years and will be for the foreseeable.

When we lost VVD for that season, the flood gates opened, as it would if we got rid of him now. We know where the issues are, we tried this week to do something about them, but for reasons beyond our control, nothing was done.

Considering only 1 player out there had a 90 minute game in pre season, and none of the back four had enough game time to be ready for today, then another point down there is a positive result  in the circumstances.

There was a time when a DM wasn’t that important to us because of how good and quick Virgil was. If Fabinho wasn’t playing it wasn’t the end of the world. We also had a lot of success playing three centre mids none of who were natural defensive midfielders but their energy and how quick Virgil was, it didn’t matter. 

Virgil was superb at making recoveries and he was as quick as any attacker in world football.

Since the Pickford assault, he hasn’t been the same player, I think the vast majority would agree with that.  He has certainly lost a yard of pace meaning a defensive midfielder to sit in front of him and give him a little more protection is now absolutely vital.