Liverpool returned home at Anfield with a largely impressive win to beat a resurgent West Ham 3-1 in the Premier League.
Liverpool 3:1 West Ham United
Anfield, Premier League (6)
24 September 2023
Goals: Salah (pen) 16′, Nunez 60′, Jota 84′; Bowen 42.
The top three fans were demanding
With Cody Gakpo still firing on all cylinders and Diogo Jota still finding consistent form after returning from injury, many Liverpool fans have been waiting and hoping to see a Diaz-Darwin-Salah triumvirate.
It’s been a few weeks and Nunez in particular had some impressive cameos for the match, but against West Ham Jurgen Klopp opted to switch to his non-European starting trio and field the fastest and most chaotic trio. further begins.
Although the early successes in the 90th minute were again more about defense than exciting attack, the first decent combination ended in a goal.
Darwin Nunez deserves credit for his field, he passed and charged forward from where it all started, while Luis Diaz jumped past a defender and tried to win the ball back. It didn’t quite come to Nunez cleanly, but instead he directed it to Mohamed Salah, who had the composure to beat the last man, win the penalty and smash into the net mercilessly.
Nunez consistently ran behind the defense, channeling and extending the length of the court, although he did not consistently receive passes.
Salah was his usual self, creative and shooting relentlessly in equal measure, while Diaz blew perhaps the most hot and cold – a threat but too often inside and stalling.
For Nunez, his long leg and deft touch to restore the Reds’ lead on the hour mark was a goal no other striker could really score.
Struggle with current problems
One day there will be that nostalgic feeling of those days when Liverpool could keep three, four, five goals in a row. But it’s not today.
Right from the start, the Reds were once again sloppy and open at the back, crediting Alisson with a rather spectacular save, looking uncertain and with no real clarity on who was picking runners in the second row.
Again.
It’s such a constant theme that fans can easily predict when the Reds are most in danger of conceding a chance, and the Hammers’ early openings have been what we’ve seen game after game, month after month.
“Trento’s role” can’t be blamed for everyone this time either; Joel Matip again looked confused at times and Tomas Soucek’s header was nowhere to be found. Meanwhile, Virgil van Dijk was caught flat as Jarrod Bowen dived home to equalize for West Ham.
On the positive side, Alexis Mac Allister looked much more settled in the No.6 role for the most part and made some good challenges and interceptions to stop some of the Hammers’ counters, but we still missed more chances than we counted on. how little the visitors had the ball.
To excel or to stand out?
Two players who may not always be in the fans’ preferred first XI – but one of whom has earned a starting position and the other is important to the team – deserve special credit for their performance at Anfield on Sunday.
First, Curtis Jones was brilliant in midfield. He linked up nicely with Dominik Szoboszlai, switching sides frequently in the first half and both had the edge to pass to split the Hammer defense and move the ball into dangerous areas in the final third.
Jones scored once, missed offside and then challenged the goalkeeper with another save. His work output was top notch and he was a real attacking threat and defensively diligent at all times.
Then Joe Gomez also deserves attention.
Used again on the right, he excelled not only in one-on-one defensive situations, but also when driving the ball forward, linking up with Salah and even passing opponents with power and technique. His role was simplified and that made the Reds more balanced.
Pecking order established in midfield?
So with Jones forcing his way into the starting line-up when fit, and Szoboszlai looking like first-choice from the moment he signed due to his Ballon d’Or-like form, it seems increasingly clear where everyone fits in Klopp’s mind at the moment
Alexis, our No.10, was very good deep in the opener and was probably the best all-round performer on the park.
​​​​​​​​​​​​​nur ad) after one impressive start and some interesting vignettes, he has established himself as the first backup option in midfield. That leaves Wataru Endo to see himself as the James Milner of the new season, a man who will see around the last ten points until the odd game where he might not look too soon.
Our only question marks are whether Stefan Bajcetic can be trusted to start at No.6 and whether Thiago Alcantara will ever start again or recover.
In the medium term the situation is still interesting, but in the short term it is clear.
The round and the next big test
Klopp made 11 changes in midweek and another eight here to return to his starting line-up. So we can expect double or near double figures again this week when the Reds take on Leicester City in the Carabao Cup. The Reds then return to Premier League action against Tottenham Hotspur, arguably the biggest test we have faced since the opening day of the season.
Under Ange Postecoglou, Spurs have been very fearless, free-flowing, and attack-minded. They are not perfect, but they are certainly more threatening than they were in the previous couple of seasons. If Liverpool wants to maintain its winning streak, it cannot afford to be anything other than fully committed.
We can’t plan too far ahead, but the Reds’ immediate goal must be to remain unbeaten through the international break. Based at least in part on our attacking performance, this is most definitely a realistic goal to set.
