bookd.
Liverpool0 - 0Fulham
Sometimes a player has a match so bad you laugh at them. David Luiz comes to mind a lot. But sometimes a player has a match so bad you genuinely want to hug them and help them look for a new career. When Ryan Gravenberch came off today, I felt so sorry for him that I couldn’t even get angry at him. How a professional footballer missed that many short passes and got his position wrong that much was really frightening to see. His confidence is shot, and apart from a January move, Iraola should only use him for a Carabao Cup games. Wirtz, though. He wasn’t depression-inducing-bad, just regular bad, so I can be mad at him. He has until December to improve, or I’m shipping him off too. You can’t be wearing the #7 for this club and go missing like that. He kicks like he’s scared of the ball, and he hides behind Kerkez and Szoboszlai when he faces duels. Isak was not much better, but he touched the ball, so there’s that. Yet again, Dom was somehow our worst and best player. But at least he’s actually trying things, unlike Wirtz. Everyone else was meh, but VVD always does my head in with the nonchalant gimmick after a big game. Mate, it was Atletico in the group stage. You’re not prime Baresi to be able to stroll at 0-0 like that. For what it’s worth, Fulham played very well. Arbeloa clearly knew it was do or die, and gave up on his principles to revert to what Liverpool struggle most with: deep blocks. The only slight I’ll give to Iraola, because he can’t be blamed for his players being stupid divas, were his subs and handling of a deep block. You have to be more creative than crossing, and we were too open at the end because he took out all the height. Without Araujo and Barcola, we were left to be manhandled by Fulham. He will have to learn quickly how to best beat a low-block, and to bench the stars when they don’t shine. To sub off Barcola and Muñoz but keep on Isak and Wirtz when it was clear they weren’t at it, was absurd. Spurs next.
Liverpool