Daniel’s Debrief: Liverpool 3-0 Brentford

Home is where the heart is for this Liverpool team.

They win their sixth home league game out of six this season and do it in style; with a performance full of panache and quality.

It could not be further removed from the rest of the week.

This time last week, there were questions about the mettle and seriousness of Liverpool as a contender this season.

But the response today is first-class and of a team that boast quality across the park. There are five outstanding performances today. Alisson Becker makes some really impressive saves, Mohamed Salah and Darwin Nunez are devastating up top, while Virgil Van Dijk and Joel Matip are imperious at the back.

Jurgen Klopp is short on bodies at the minute and Ibrahima Konate and Joe Gomez are added to the injury list here, as well as the suspended Alexis Mac Allister. And so, he moves Cody Gakpo into midfield and keeps Kostas Tsimikas at left-back, with Wataru Endo also coming in.

An extremely youthful bench, too.

I think you can usually tell from the first five minutes what kind of Liverpool team has turned up and it’s a bright, energetic start. There’s more urgency, pace and intricacy to the play than we’ve seen in the last two games.

Tsimikas has an edgy start to the game, as does Endo, but both massively grow into it. Gakpo starts the game really well and it’s interesting that it’s the second time this year that he’s started as an eight at home to Brentford, one of the tallest teams in the league.

Playing against them though, you also have to be wary of the threat they pose on the counter and the first big chance of the game comes from this. Christian Norgaard, a superb player, sends a stunning vertical pass for Bryan Mbeumo to run onto. From a Liverpool corner, Brentford are suddenly in.

Trent Alexander-Arnold sticks to him and Alisson stands up well and produces a phenomenal save when Mbeumo tries the clever dink. Alisson sticks out his left hand and diverts it away from goal, Alexander-Arnold mopping up the extras.

The warning sign is served and the Reds go in front through a delightful team goal. Matip does brilliantly to win it and the ball is worked through to Alexander-Arnold via Dominik Szoboszlai. The right-back plays an incisive vertical pass to Nunez, whose touch through to Salah is immaculate. It’s a classic calm Salah left-footed finish into the opposite corner for a lead that Liverpool are good value for.

What’s impressive is the desire to make it two before the break. There’s no sitting on the first goal - I don’t think Liverpool have the personnel on the pitch to do that today - and they stand up to the particular challenges Brentford pose really well.

Gakpo has arguably his best 45 minutes of the season, contributing by driving Liverpool forward by completing the simple passes in an effective manner, and it’s intriguing that his best performance of the season so far comes in this deeper role as an eight.

Nunez is simply magnificent in that first half, though. His range of skills are on display from the delicate pass to Salah for the goal - another combination for that duo - to his superb hold-up play, which helps Liverpool in all thirds of the pitch on a number of occasions.

Playing on the counter too, he makes the right decision each time and links up well with both Salah and Jota. What a half he produces. He is almost silent in the second half yet is still a man of the match contender, such is the nature of his first 45.

He gets two ruled out, as well. Correctly, but the finish for that second is exquisite.

It remains 1-0 at half-time but not for the want of trying - Van Dijk’s header saved by Mark Flekken, Gakpo shooting just over from distance and Salah firing over from a glorious Alexander-Arnold pass.

The first major event of the second 45 is Endo getting a bit lucky to stay on the pitch after a studs-up tackle on Norgaard - at least a yellow but not booked, yet a lengthy check for a red ensues.

I wouldn’t have had many complaints if a red had been shown.

He has a decent game, Endo. I really rate all three of their midfielders - Mathias Jensen and Vitaly Janelt complement Norgaard so well - but to be fair to Endo, he competes well and barring that out-of-control tackle, puts in a solid shift.

Szoboszlai helps him out with a grafting, rather than sensational, performance. Gakpo takes on a lot of Szoboszlai’s creative mantle by helping Liverpool progress with the ball up field.

I don’t think Alexander-Arnold inverts as much today but is useful in possession and barring one odd moment early on, has a reasonable day in defence. 

Tsimikas’ game improves dramatically in the second half and gets one of the best assists of the season. Jota, who has a great game and doesn’t give Kristoffer Ajer a minute’s peace, slips in Tsimikas down the left flank and he does remarkably well to reach the ball before it goes out and dig out a cross into the middle.

Nathan Collins, Ben Mee and Ethan Pinnock all switch off, as does Flekken, and Salah arcs his neck well to guide his header into the net for 2-0. Tsimikas and Salah deserve all the credit here for playing to the whistle and combining for a hard-fought goal.

He assists the third, too. A return pass to Jota who cuts inside and unleashes a beautiful guided shot into the far corner. He’s in brilliant form, Jota, and looks likely to score every time he takes to the field.

Towards the end of the game, Liverpool repel corner after corner for Brentford. Alisson does so well from a Pinnock header, and they just refuse to concede. Against a side with such set-piece strength, it’s impressive to do this.

A large part of this clean sheet is earned through the centre-backs. Matip is vastly improved from Thursday night, his reading of the game is flawless here and he carries the ball well, as well as the way he gets Liverpool up field with his vertical passing.

Van Dijk is genuinely world-class today. He’s had a few games this season where he’s looked back to his 2017-20 self and today is another example of that. He is colossal today.

Wins his battles incredibly, both on the floor and in the air. Aerial duels are so key against Brentford. And he is outstanding in every facet of the physical game.

Technically, he doesn’t miss a beat either. His passing is arguably the best in the Liverpool team all day, again both short-range and over distance. There’s one audacious switch from left to right in the second half which sees Salah slightly overhit the cross to Nunez for what would’ve been one of the all-time great team goals.

It’s an outstanding performance from the captain.

What’s good about Liverpool today is how professional they are and how well they discipline themselves. This performance is everything that the last two are not. 

With Flekken taking free-kicks on the halfway line, it must be so tempting for Nunez or Salah to position themselves high up the pitch anticipating a turnover, but they don’t, instead recognising the ability all through their team in the box and making sure everyone contributes towards thwarting them.

It’s one of the most consummate and satisfying clean sheets in a long time, because they have to work for it and nobody gives less than a 7/10. 

The likes of Matip and Tsimikas step up hugely, while Salah, Nunez and Jota show why they’re Liverpool’s first-choice attack right now.

I felt Klopp may change system today and the lineup screamed 4-2-3-1, but he sticks to 4-3-3 and the key player here is Gakpo, who connects the midfield to the attack so well from that eight role, particularly in the first half.

Six wins out of six in the league at Anfield and only two goals conceded - Bournemouth and West Ham. We’ve scored 17 in those six games and kept four clean sheets.

The home form is monstrous.

Of course, you’d like the away form to improve a bit. But the home form is so reliable that it’s hard to see them dropping many points at Anfield all season. Aside from the fact the results are better, they seem to have so many more ideas of how to break a team down at home than on the road.

And they look a different beast at the back. Not passive like at Brighton, not sluggish like at Luton, not careless like at Toulouse.

It was the first must-win of the season and not only do they do that, they do it with a performance that suggests they’re never going to fail to.

Paul Tierney still the worst referee going, by the way.

We get away with one from Endo potentially, while Matip is somehow booked when he is clattered in the air.

The guy is simply atrocious but he unifies the crowd with his ineptitude and gives a cold Anfield something to shout about in the first half and suddenly Liverpool switch it up a gear.

27 points. 2nd place. A point from the top.

Still involved in both the Europa and the League Cup.

Already got four of the hardest eight away fixtures done.

Done it without a DM.

Everyone would’ve taken that. Everyone.

The Etihad next but it’s a free hit in many ways. There’s little pressure on Liverpool.

They look more and more like their 21/22 selves by the week.

Daniel