Aston Villa 3 – 3 Liverpool – The Postmortem
This was a game that meant more to the home side, with their fight for 4th place still under threat by the 5th placed Tottenham. The entire game was a striking endorsement of the Premier League and despite some serious poor defensive decisions at times, it may have been one of the games of the 2023/24 campaign.
Below is how the team lined up, with match details following.
The Starting Eleven
Alisson Becker, Trent Alexander Arnold, Ibrahima Konaté, Virgil van Dijk (c), Joe Gomez, Harvey Elliott, Wataru Endō, Alexis Mac Allister, Mohamed Salah, Cody Gakpo, Luis Díaz
Subs
Ryan Gravenberch – Luis Díaz (75 mins), Curtis Jones – Wataru Endō (75 mins), Darwin Núñez – Cody Gakpo (75 mins), Dominik Szoboszlai – Harvey Elliott (75 mins)
Goals
Aston Villa 0 – 1 Liverpool – Emi Martinez (own goal) 2 mins
Aston Villa 1 – 1 Liverpool – Youri Tielemans (Ollie Watkins) 12 mins
Aston Villa 1 – 2 Liverpool – Cody Gakpo (Joe Gomez) 23 mins
Aston Villa 1 – 3 Liverpool – Jarell Quansah (Harvey Elliott) 48 mins
Aston Villa 2 – 3 Liverpool – Jhon Durán (Callum Chambers) 85 mins
Aston Villa 3 – 3 Liverpool – Jhon Durán (Moussa Diaby) 88 mins
Important Match Stats
Possession – Aston Villa 41% – 59% Liverpool
Total Shots – Aston Villa 19 – 14 Liverpool
Crosses – Aston Villa 12 – 11 Liverpool
Corner Kicks – Aston Villa 5 – 4 Liverpool
Goalkeeper Saves – Aston Villa 5 – 2 Liverpool
The First Half
The opening period of this game was an ideal one for Liverpool, as a Harvey Elliott cross deflected past an uncharacteristically misjudging Emi Martinez. As the away side threatened to take the game away from the 4th placed side, the hosts struck back after Ollie Watkins easily found his way into the penalty area, before pulling back for Youri Tielemans to blast through a crowd of bodies.
Either side of Liverpool’s second goal, Villa were able to penetrate time and time again, as the end of season relaxation appeared to creep into the work ethic of the Anfield giants. That second Liverpool goal arrived due to a smart Joe Gomez cross, one which allowed Cody Gakpo the simplest of tap-ins at the far post. Somehow, the traveling reds managed to hold onto their 1-2 lead and their manager would have been glad to have heard the half time whistle.
The Second Half
On resumption of the second half, no changes were made as the reds started with more pressure and a superbly headed Jarell Quansah goal. A good Harvey Elliott delivery was met with precision and at that point the game, it really should have been shut down and closed out.
Sadly, for the travelling support, this current version of rock and roll football prefers to remain as open and inviting as possible, thereby allowing as many counter attacks and goal scoring opportunities as possible. A couple of seasons ago, Villa humbled this club with an extraordinary 7-2 scoreline and based upon the open spaces gifted to this powerful and pacy adversary tonight, it would not have been misplaced to have endured a similar defeat.
Jhon Durán was able to net twice in the closing stages of regulation time, with he and his determined teammates flying through a vacant midfield and an overworked defensive line. The goals were deserved, even if the equaliser comically fortunate. The cycle of ineffective defending is thankfully closing out next week and the first job of the incoming Dutch head coach, Arne Slot, will surely be to install a stronger on and off ball culture that does not allow such instances to materialise again.
Final Thoughts
This was a game that again meant little to the away side, however, such performances will allow the new decision makers a clear look at the glaring deficiencies in the squad and what must be done to ensure this historic football club is fully prepared for next season.
Next up Wolves, where the final home game of a famous German manager awaits.
Steven Smith
