Daniel’s Debrief: Bournemouth 1-2 Liverpool

The manager’s invested again.

We think so much about players having good or bad seasons but we often forget to talk about managers having good and bad years in their career, in the same way players do. 

Last year, Jurgen Klopp has a bad year. He was an underperformer in the same way that Jordan Henderson and Virgil Van Dijk were. 

But so far, he’s having a great season this time around. As well as his decision-making, tactical work and game management being hugely improved, he himself seems more energised and up for it across all competitions.

And we see that here with perhaps a stronger lineup than some might expect, one which features Dominik Szoboszlai and Mohamed Salah.

More tellingly, though, is a bench that boasts the likes of Virgil Van Dijk, Alexis Mac Allister, Diogo Jota, Ibrahima Konate, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Darwin Nunez. Alisson Becker is the only available first-teamer who isn’t in the squad.

Klopp wanted to win this.

So many times he’s named half-arsed teams and even less-arsed benches in the Carabao Cup when he’s been neither here nor there about getting through but his approach in both the Leicester game, and this here, shows that he’s keen to replicate the 2022 victory.

Hideous weather conditions mean for a grind rather than a show but Liverpool get the job done in their own infatigable style.

The Reds have shown they can win handsomely this season - Villa, Forest, Toulouse as well as fight for their lives - Newcastle, Spurs, Bournemouth. You face so many varying challenges over the course of the season and every match is different. Klopp’s treating each one individually.

Despite the relentless wind and the never-ending rain, Liverpool actually play some nice stuff in that first half. Lined up in a 4-4-2 system, they are so fluid and interchanging.

There’s times that Salah and Cody Gakpo are the front two, there’s times that it’s Szoboszlai switching with Gakpo. It’s an interesting tactical choice from Klopp to go with this formation and it’s his way of getting around the missing players, without weakening his team too much.

Some of the interplay is really nice and intricate, which is credit to the quality of Liverpool’s personnel in the circumstances. Harvey Elliott’s first touch is to die for in this game and Curtis Jones has a really good performance in a midfield double pivot too.

Salah is less of an outlet being up top but still manages to bring other players into the game. I remember when we played 4-2-3-1 in parts of 2018/19 and Salah would be the striker with Xherdan Shaqiri on the right wing. That was a Liverpool team set up to score goals and so is this one.

After a few chances, most of which come down that right flank, the goal comes from a Kostas Tsimikas corner which Elliott volleys back into the danger zone. Quansah diverts it towards goal but it is blocked, before Gakpo stabs it past Andrei Radu.

It’s interesting that the goal comes from the second phase of a corner - Liverpool have been deadly from them this season. There’s some irritation that they continue lumping the ball high into the box against two extremely tall and active centre-backs in Illia Zabarnyi and Chris Mepham.

The goal is deserved and Gakpo has a good night. He’s perhaps been the quietest of Liverpool’s five forwards this season but he’s scored in his last four starts and all of them have been Liverpool’s first goal of the game.

More chances come, with some neat combination play, particularly down the right flank, causing problems for Bournemouth. I do like their left-back Milos Kerkez and he stands up well to the challenge but the movement of Salah and Szoboszlai in particular gives him a lot to think about.

Salah’s shift is impressive. As well as being one of the most skilful and technically brilliant players and goalscorers on the planet, it often goes under the radar what a grafter he is. This game is such a slog, especially second half, and he performs his role, closing down every Bournemouth pass with the same urgency and desire as the first. He loves the chance to be captain and puts in a leader’s, rather than a superstar’s, performance.

Radu makes a good save from Elliott after a gorgeous cut-back from Szoboszlai and at half-time, there’s a degree of frustration that it’s only 1-0, particularly in the knowledge that the wind would be in Bournemouth’s favour in the second half.

Caoimhin Kelleher has a really good first half. I’ve been critical of some of his recent performances but his handling here in the conditions is admirable and I think this is possibly his best performance for Liverpool so far.

Bournemouth are better in the second half and Alex Scott is putting in James Ward-Prowse-esque corners into a very windy Liverpool box. Joe Gomez does incredibly well to head the first off the line but minutes later, they equalise from an identical corner, Justin Kluivert (must not call him Patrick) heading home from Scott’s on-the-money delivery.

There’s pressure from the Cherries for most of the second half and Andoni Iraola makes the baffling decision to take Scott off late on, which given the problems he’d created from set-pieces, felt like a huge boost for Liverpool.

Bournemouth are interesting this season. Iraola did a phenomenal job at Rayo Vallecano in Spain and had a way of getting results against Barcelona, Real and Atletico. We’ve played them twice and while they’ve been competitive both times, their league position is much worse than I’d have expected.

Still, there’s some nice players in that squad. I’ve mentioned Kerkez and Zabarnyi, both of whom I like, and Philip Billing is a unique style of midfielder too. Antoine Semenyo is a good winger and really should’ve scored earlier in the second half, just before Kluivert’s goal.

Klopp’s level of interest in this game is confirmed when he brings on Nunez, Alexander-Arnold and Mac Allister and later on, Gravenberch and Jota. Liverpool end the game with an attack of Salah-Nunez-Jota and a midfield of Alexander-Arnold-Mac Allister-Gravenberch. I don’t think we’ve ever seen that level of strength from a Jurgen Klopp side in the fourth round of this competition.

It’s interesting that Alexander-Arnold plays solely in midfield here. He has a good cameo, I think, and really gets his teeth into the game. 

The starting midfield does a decent enough job, Wataru Endo’s work on the ball is good even if his tackling leaves something to be desired. Jones starts the game really well and he’s back in contention for the league games from Sunday onwards.

The other subs make an impact. Mac Allister brings poise, Jota provides an outlet, and Gravenberch gives about 20 fouls away in an attempt to see the time out.

Oh, and there’s Nunez too.

What a goal. What a fucking goal.

Alexander-Arnold’s cross-field switch is mis-controlled and he’s chasing his tail a bit. He stands and waits before cutting in and bending a stunning strike, an unstoppable rocket, into the net. And the lead is restored.

And be honest, which one did you think of? 

Fernando Torres v Sunderland in 2010 or Luis Suarez v Stoke in 2011?

It’s a special goal from a player who is having a magnificent season. He’s a player who I feel so excited to watch at the minute and it’s because he’s capable of moments like that. 

I still think the player he most reminds me of is Edinson Cavani but thinking back to that Sunderland goal, it’s now twice in a week that I’ve compared him to Torres, and that’s a mouth-watering thought.

It’s a goal that wins the tie and normally would be of sufficient quality to make any man of the match votes redundant, but on this occasion, the winner of that accolade is elsewhere.

Joel Matip was rock-solid at the back. It’s another very sound showing from Gomez at right-back, and he gets up the field so much. Kostas Tsimikas has a quiet evening in attack but was convincing enough in defence. Credit to all three of them.

But the best player on the pitch was 20-year-old Jarell Quansah. His composure and assurance at the back is genuinely remarkable. He is so good on the ball and so active and present without it.

He rises high for a big header second half when Kelleher is beaten, he makes numerous interceptions and tackles and puts in a display that any centre-back, anywhere in the world, would be proud of.

It’s early days but he’s not looked out of place in this Liverpool team so far and that’s in all three of the different competitions he’s started.

And he is one of the big reasons that Liverpool are in the quarter-finals of this competition, where they play West Ham at Anfield in December.

The game falls between home clashes with Manchester United and Arsenal for us, and between fixtures with Wolves and United for them.

By no means is that an easy tie, particularly given that Klopp is likely to make changes considering where the fixture is sandwiched in between, but if he takes the same approach as he does at Bournemouth, there’ll hopefully be enough in the squad to get the job done.

There’s plenty of time between now and then, though, and the next week is about six points in the league and putting the Europa group stage to bed.

The manager fancies a run at everything this season.

Daniel