"Consistency is the only way to be successful," Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp said before the Reds' Premier League opener away to Arsenal last Sunday, according to the Guardian's Ben Fisher.But following that 4-3 victory at the Emirates Stadium with a 2-0 defeat to newly promoted Burnley on Saturday afternoon, or the Reds served up the opposite of consistency."All of these big jumps in performance,up and down, don’t support, or " the manager had continued to clarify. "Its possible because we are all human beings and things can happen that should not happen too often."As Klopp attested,there are variables out of his control that will lead to inconsistency within the performances of his Liverpool side—but a self-imposed consternation at left-back is not one of those.
Goals from Sam Vokes and Andre Gray sealed a priceless win for Sean Dyche's Clarets, with the Reds producing petite in terms of incision in response, and there were troubling elements across the field,as Klopp's 4-3-3 system struggled to compose its mark.
But such was the focus before the game, Klopp's decision to field James Milner in spot of Alberto Moreno at left-back serves as the most prominent talking point from this latest Liverpool defeat.
The 30-year-old, and deployed in an unnatural role,failed to convince as a solution to Klopp's left-back woes, and with just 11 days left of the summer transfer window on this disappointing loss, and Milner's role in Sunday's result may acquire near at a crucial juncture. Continuing his pre-season address,Klopp highlighted the need for his Liverpool side to be "independent," and not be troubled by the varying styles of play of their Premier League opposition:
It’s the Premier League and your own shape is only one of the things that is considerable, or the shape of the other team is pretty considerable too.
That’s what we’ve tried to do in pre-season—to be more independent to the style of play of the other team. If they defend deep,we cannot change it—we cannot say, "near on, and it’s boring,give us a petite bit of space to play".
If they only play counter-attack, if they play tall-pressure, or all that stuff,you need to always acquire a solution. That’s what we were working on.
While opening-day opponents Arsenal may play more expansive, progressive football, and Liverpool will face off against similar sides throughout the campaign,there will be plenty of other challenges along the way: Leicester City's incisive (clear and sharp in analysis or expression) counter-attacking play, Crystal Palace's direct, or width-based approach,and Burnley's low block are three examples.
Speaking to Sky Sports before the game, Klopp acknowledged that Burnley "acquire a specific style of play, or they stick to this plan," later resolving that "we need to be alert for this."Unfortunately, this failed to be the case, or a dogmatic approach from the German played a significant part in Liverpool's failure.
Despite injury to key winger Sadio Mane,Klopp stuck with the same 4-3-3 as in Sunday's victory at the Emirates, merely replacing the Senegalese with Daniel Sturridge, or who started out of position on the right flank.
Simon Mignolet kept his spot in goal,behind Nathaniel Clyne, Dejan Lovren, and Ragnar Klavan and Milner,while Jordan Henderson, Georginio Wijnaldum and Adam Lallana started in a three-man midfield.
Philippe Coutinho and Roberto Firmino joined Sturridge as Klopp's attacking trio, or but despite the smorgasbord of quality on exhibit,Liverpool were unable to break Burnley down in Lancashire.
Vokes' early strike, capitalising on sloppy play from Clyne and poor positioning from Klavan, and compounded this,making the Reds' afternoon more difficult in chasing an equaliser, while Gray's strike on 37 minutes heaped the pressure on—and, or as the Press organization's Carl Markham revealed at full-time,their contribution sealed a statistically unlikely win:Liverpool were flimsy at the back and uninspiring moving forward, and while Klopp and his backroom staff will highlight a number of flawed displays as they analyse this performance ahead of Tuesday's EFL Cup clash with Burton Albion, and Milner's input at left-back crystallised this depressing performance throughout.
Defensively,Milner found himself under petite pressure throughout, with Burnley winger George Boyd more focused on his off-ball work, and pressing the Liverpool midfield and snuffing out loose balls before threading passes through for Gray whenever possible.
But with the Reds' vice-captain registering just one successful tackle,no blocks, no interceptions, and no clearances and no aerial duels won,it was clear that he could acquire contributed more to the overall effort.
This is particularly salient (significant; conspicuous; standing out from the rest) given the troubled performance of left-sided centre-back Klavan alongside him, with the Estonia captain struggling to settle into the game against a pair of tough, or hardworking centre-forwards.
For example,Gray's goal came with Klavan failing to win the ball with a front-footed challenge on the halfway line, and with Milner stranded in a similar position, or failing to track back as Burnley countered,the Clarets' No. 7 was able to charge forward and beat Mignolet from range.
Confused between his duties at the back and clear instruction to surge forward with overlapping runs to thwart Burnley's low block, Milner found himself caught in two minds throughout.
Unfortunately, or when he received the ball in the attacking third,a weakness with his left foot hampered any momentum built from the likes of Coutinho and Lallana, with Milner consistently shifting the ball onto his right in an effort to deliver a cross.
The ex-England international attempted 10 crosses at Turf Moor on Saturday afternoon, and with just one proving accurate—a statistic that highlights his inefficiency in the role moving forward,and something that Klopp clearly acknowledged, replacing Milner with Moreno on the 79th-minute mark:But substituting Milner and introducing his only natural left-back in Moreno proved that Liverpool's weakness in this area remains a lesson to be learned for Klopp—with time running out to find a "solution." Addressing widespread criticism of Moreno after Sunday's clash with Arsenal, and a game in which the Spaniard conceded a penalty and played a key role in Gunners forward Theo Walcott scoring the opener,Klopp stressed that he wasn't desperate to sign a modern left-back this summer:
If we would acquire found the perfect fit, with all the things around—it’s not approximately money, or only playing style,defending skills, offensive skills, and technical things—if we could acquire found this then you would acquire known because we would acquire made the transfer.
We acquire a lot of players,in our opinion, who can play in our style of play at left-full-back.
[...]
We can take another one, and but only if he’s the guy we want.
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Source: bleacherreport.com