It’s about time Liverpool remembered how to go deep. While Jürgen Klopp more or less admitted that the red machine is still not fully back into action, he did at least see glimpses of the old fighting spirit.
It took a lot of guts to see off another late Tottenham comeback, not to mention plenty of Ibrahima Konaté’s clearances and Alisson’s brave punches, and while this wasn’t a complete Liverpool display, it was easy to see why Klopp celebrated at full-time. parading through the countryside to celebrate with the support of the traveler.
It’s been a strange few months for Liverpool. Whether this win, the league’s first on the road, marks a turning point remains to be seen. The legs are more tired and the intensity has dropped. This is still not the dynamic force it once was and, for all that Liverpool highlighted in the first half, building a lead thanks to two clinical strikes from Mohamed Salah, Antonio Conte wasn’t exactly pushing it when he insisted that the A draw would have been fairer. result
In the end, Liverpool had Salah alone up front and a back-five struggling to protect the points. Spurs played with unbridled fury after Harry Kane halved the deficit and will be encouraged by how their attack improved after Dejan Kulusevski, who has not played since September, came off the bench.
“We have to respect the fans,” Conte said, reflecting on the boos that greeted his team at half-time. “They pay for their tickets. But if you ask me if I’m a little disappointed? Yes.” Conte’s perspective certainly had merit, although much of the home unease stemmed from his side’s repeated inability to seize the initiative from the first whistle.Ultimately, this was a recovery too far for the Spurs, who have conceded third place to Newcastle, and Liverpool took advantage. “A brilliant first half,” said Klopp. “Winning here is incredibly difficult.”
There was a striking difference in the way the teams lined up in the final third, with Spurs reacting to injuries to Richarlison and Son Heung-min by asking Ivan Perisic to support Kane, Liverpool’s third striker which caused constant problems with its interchangeable movement.
Harry Kane celebrates scoring the goal that gave Spurs hope of a draw. Photograph: Catherine Ivill/Getty Images
The first 10 minutes were Liverpool unleashed, the sense of authority of old returning to the red shirts. It was also Spurs at their reactive worst and the immediate concern for Conte must have been that none of his defenders knew who they were supposed to pick up. The problem for Eric Dier, Ben Davies and Clement Lenglet was that Liverpool, who are seven points clear of Spurs, had no focal point. There was no chance for Salah to get stuck down the right and the visitors didn’t hang around.
They quickly looked for Darwin Núñez, an anarchic presence who liked to attack the space behind Emerson Royal on the left, and another concern for Conte was how his hopes of winning the midfield battle to be destroyed by Roberto Firmino, who went down to receive. the ball between the lines.
There was an inevitability that Firmino sparked the move for Liverpool’s first goal. They had already threatened through Núñez and soon separated Spurs again. Firmino sent Andy Robertson forward and when Spurs backed down, the left-back pointed to Núñez, whose lay-off gave Salah time to get back on his left foot and beat Hugo Lloris.
The spurs were sculptural, though hinting at a replica. Perisic has headed towards the post. Alisson also had to save smartly from Pierre-Emile Højbjerg and there were some worrying moments for Liverpool when Ryan Sessegnon ran into Trent Alexander-Arnold.
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At that point, Liverpool, who had lost their last two league games, appeared to have relinquished control. Alexander-Arnold’s defense was patchy and Spurs became bolder, feeling Rodrigo Bentancur, Højbjerg and Yves Bissouma begin to overwhelm Thiago Alcântara, Harvey Elliott and Fabinho.
One single mistake changed everything. Five minutes before the break, Alisson sent a long ball forward. Without any pressure, Dier saw it drop from the sky and headed it straight to Salah, who accepted the gift by running in to beat Lloris with a little bit of charm.
End of the game? Not exactly. Spurs came out with more intensity after the break, Perisic again hitting the woodwork and starting to push Liverpool back. “We had to keep fighting,” Klopp said. “We did it.” Conte had opened the match, introducing Kulusevski and Matt Doherty. Spurs are a different team when Kulusevski plays. The winger gives them more angles and was soon involved, dribbling past Thiago and releasing Kane, who held off Konaté and curled a shot past Alisson.
Liverpool prepared for a siege. They fell behind and Klopp rowed with Conte, who was booked. It was all Spurs; howls of anguish were heard as Lenglet headed in a deflected corner. Bentancur failed to convert a shot from Kane. Everything went hand in hand for Liverpool. Núñez and Firmino came out, with Jordan Henderson in midfield and Joe Gomez joined by Konaté and Virgil van Dijk in central defence.
It was desperate stuff from both teams and Klopp’s relief was immense when it was over.