Van Dijk

Monterrey 1-2 Liverpool: Who Was Man of the Match?

Liverpool progress to the final of the Club World Cup after a far from convincing 2-1 win over Monterrey. The Reds left it late once again, but Roberto Firmino’s injury-time goal was enough to clinch the victory following Naby Keita’s opener and Funes Mori’s leveller. The team selected to start the game was unorthodox,...

Player ratings as Liverpool book last 16 place in Austria

Get in! The reigning European Champions once again move into the last 16 of European competition under Jurgen Klopp, with goals from Naby Keita and Mohamed Salah securing a 2-0 win for Liverpool against Salzburg. In a fairly hostile atmosphere, the fixture delivered what was expected. There was high paced football with chances at both...

Liverpool 1-1 Napoli: A Tactical Breakdown

Carlo Ancelotti's Napoli are a formidable force. Last season, they were an Alisson save away from knocking Liverpool out of the Champions League in the group stages. They were also one of the few teams to utterly outplay Liverpool over the course of last season, as they won 1-0 at the San Paolo stadium,...

What now for Joe Gomez?

It seems very strange to say now, but it’s been nearly a year since Joe Gomez was Liverpool’s first choice centre-back. The 22-year-old had well and truly established himself as Virgil Van Dijk’s partner by this time last season, and he started 12 of Liverpool’s first 15 Premier League games last season, as well as...

Have Liverpool Already Found Klopp’s Successor?

“Our identity is intensity.” They were more than words – a tagline, or perhaps an often-repeatable motto, that anyone would think came from Jürgen Klopp himself. But no, they came from his second in command, the man seemingly placed in charge of the Reds’ Capital One Cup campaign: Pepijn Lijnders. “All these boys from the city have...

Four Years of Jurgen Klopp – Part 5: Klopp 4-0 Impossible

This month marks four years since Jürgen Klopp took charge at Anfield and began the process of transforming the Reds into one of the most dominant teams in world football. You can read the previous entries in the series below: Part 1: Liverpool 2-2 West Bromwich Albion Part 2: Manchester City 1-4 Liverpool  Part 3: Liverpool 4-3 Borussia...

Four Years of Jürgen Klopp – Part 4: The Black Comedy

This month marks four years since Jürgen Klopp took charge at Anfield and began the process of transforming the Reds from Premier League also-rans into one of the dominant teams in world football. I’ve been reminiscing about some of the crucial games and moments that have stood out over that period. You can read the...

Four wonderful years of Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool

People often say that you remember exactly where you were when huge moments in history occurred. I'll never forget hearing about the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center on the bus home from school, for example, or seeing a kids TV show interrupted in order to inform me of the death of Princess Diana. I...

How Trent Alexander-Arnold Has Become Klopp’s de Bruyne

No, for the love of God, Trent Alexander-Arnold is not as good as Kevin de Bruyne. Just examine the radar below, courtesy of understat.com, for evidence of that. Kevin de Bruyne, under Pep Guardiola, is a phenomenon, involved in everything Manchester City do on a football pitch. Without him, as evidenced by the performance...

Player Ratings as Liverpool Topple Leicester City

The Reds keep marching on after a dramatic 95th-minute penalty from James Milner sealed all 3 points. Liverpool should have had the game wrapped up much earlier but wasted a number of opportunities, allowing Leicester the chance to level late on. However, it was a thoroughly deserved win which will undoubtedly boil the piss of...