Daniel’s Debrief: Liverpool 4-1 Luton

Biggest win in our history, that.

Taking the piss a little but with such a dearth of options, I’m not sure Jurgen Klopp has had many better wins as Liverpool manager.

He references Barcelona in 2019 and the fact that tonight is mentioned in the same sentence as that should demonstrate the importance.

This was always going to be a tricky little game, stuck in between a huge league match and a cup final, and it got much, much harder with the losses of Alisson Becker, Diogo Jota and Curtis Jones at the weekend, and when news broke of Mohamed Salah and Darwin Nunez also withdrawing, it looked a forlorn task for the Reds.

Indeed, no fewer than ten senior first-teamers were unavailable for this one and Klopp ends up naming a bench filled with youngsters.

Two of his four senior players on the bench are left-backs, and one is a third-choice goalkeeper.

He recognises the significance of a win tonight - in many ways, more important than Sunday - and goes as strong as he can, while giving Ibrahima Konate a rest ahead of the weekend.

No-one could’ve had any criticisms of his team selection and in fact it was probably one of the easiest he’s ever made in eight-and-a-half years at the club.

Because what options did he have?

Klopp understood the assignment. He knew that if Liverpool get the first goal and start well, Luton’s hopes would be dented and they would be forced to chase the game, which is what ends up happening to them against United at the weekend.

And tonight starts very similar to that United game, actually. Liverpool have a bagful of chances in the first ten minutes.

But, unlike United and Rasmus Hojlund in particular, they don’t put them away.

Luis Diaz sees his shots saved, blocked, cleared and sail over in a flurry of efforts that Nunez would’ve been proud of.

Harvey Elliott buzzes about well and looks to make an early impact on the game in a rare start for him.

As I said, Klopp knew what needed to be done. But, it doesn’t get done and with one of their first forays forward, Luton capitalise on some very average defending.

The lack of pressure from Jarell Quansah and Ryan Gravenberch gives Tahith Chong a head start that he makes good use of. It’s a well-struck shot but it’s at Caoimhin Kelleher’s near post and whilst he doesn’t concede it, his body positioning is so strange for this one and it rebounds into the path of Chiedozie Ogbene, who heads home with ease.

Other than this, Quansah and Kelleher were both pretty faultless. It was the right decision to play Quansah, meaning Klopp can play Konate and Van Dijk at the weekend. One of the biggest compliments you can play Quansah is that he can get dropped into any big game and there’s no surprise or concern at seeing his name on the team sheet.

Kelleher, otherwise, was good. His distribution long-distance was excellent in the first half and was a way out for Liverpool. A few chances for Diaz came from his long balls downfield. 

Once again though, there is a problem with his near post and with shots that have power to them. He’s stepped up well in the last few games but there’s still a glaring area of weakness to his game.

Thomas Kaminski is a fine goalkeeper and is probably in the discussion for keeper of the season, along with Guglielmo Vicario, Alisson Becker and Djordje Petrovic.

At 0-1, all of our biggest fears had come to be. Utter domination early on but a lack of being clinical hurts us and one lapse at the back has the opposition in front. The worries of Luton sitting deep from here on in and it being ‘one of those days’ for Liverpool were very, very real.

It felt desperate and even though Liverpool have made a habit of comebacks this season, this situation felt different and just not likely.

It felt like the house of cards was starting to wobble. Finally, Liverpool’s infallible responses to adversity were about to end.

But, Liverpool have Klopp. And he knows nothing about being beaten.

Arguably the biggest problem was that there was nothing Klopp could do to change the game in terms of personnel. 

But this didn’t stop him having a major impact on the second half. Because it’s not just personnel he can change, but tactics too.

Conor Bradley and Alexis Mac Allister were two of Liverpool’s better performers in the first half, with the attackers struggling to click and Elliott falling off a cliff from 20 minutes onwards.

Klopp makes a tweak to push Elliott wider and allow Bradley to invert more centrally and create a midfield pivot of Bradley, Mac Allister and Wataru Endo, when we had possession.

This worked perfectly. There is tempo and movement to Liverpool’s play as soon as the second half kicks off and they manage to be relentless in their attacks. 

Unlike in the first half, Luton can’t find a way out. They are constantly penned back through Bradley and Elliott on the right flank.

Liverpool also put Endo on Ross Barkley, who has a majestic first half, and suddenly his influence on the game reduces dramatically.

With nothing on his bench to use, Klopp still came up with a tactical masterstroke.

Now, Liverpool have the authority in the game. All they need is the one thing that has looked so near yet so agonisingly far away all evening.

A goal.

Virgil Van Dijk is having none of this bullshit. He is not interested in the narratives of poor Liverpool, he is not in the mood for people to feel sorry for themselves, he doesn’t want to waste time crying over who’s missing.

Because for all that there’s players not there, there’s him, still there.

He pulls away from Ogbene and heads Mac Allister’s corner past Kaminski and into the corner.

Bang.

The Kop goes wild but there is barely a flicker from the captain, who couldn’t get back into his own half quickly enough.

There’s a game to be won here, fellas.

Bradley feels it. He comes up with a moment of genuine inspiration and spots the late run of Mac Allister into the box.

He finds him with a quick throw-in and Mac Allister, on the volley, swings it into Cody Gakpo’s path, and the Dutchman nods it home from close range.

Bedlam. Pandemonium. Anarchy.

In 125 seconds, the Kop had gone from deflated, despondent and writing its own hard-luck story to looking livelier than it has in years.

This wasn’t a late winner like in the derby against Everton in 2018 or Chelsea in 2009.

In fact, no-one even knew it was a winner, it was only the 59th minute. Yet it was celebrated more than any home goal has been all season.

Because those fans are bright and they are worldly. They have seen it all before with football. They know what matters and why.

They know, I know, you know that that 125 seconds could be like the 83 seconds against Fulham in December where we come from 2-3 down to win.

There’s a title to win here, fellas.

0 points to 6 in 208 seconds. The two biggest home wins of the season. And it’s Fulham and Luton!

Gakpo gets some stick and some of it is from me and some of it is deserved but he is a bit like Dirk Kuyt or Yossi Benayoun or Maxi Rodríguez in that he has a remarkable knack of scoring big, important goals.

What Bradley does is better than Trent Alexander-Arnold’s corner against Barcelona, I’m saying that. This boy is exceptional.

His athleticism and engine is just ridiculous. He is everywhere in that second half. At 0-1 he sets up a chance for Diaz with some unbelievable footwork in a tight space on the edge of the box.

He wins the ball on the touchline when he looks like he’s got no chance, he gets down the flank and whips in disgustingly good crosses, and fucking hell, he can play in midfield too.

This is one of the best individual performances of the season and the fact he’s the first player subbed off on 68 minutes shows how good he actually is and was - he’s starting the League Cup final on Sunday and of all of our current absentees, Alexander-Arnold is the one that’s least worrying.

Because Conor Bradley is so precocious and is doing stuff that I’ve not seen a Liverpool academy product do so early into their career since probably Alexander-Arnold himself.

16 Liverpool appearances.

Remember that game in 2021 where we drew 2-2 with Man City at Anfield? Salah scored his wonder goal where he sits down Joao Cancelo and finishes on his right foot, and Phil Foden and Kevin De Bruyne score bangers for City.

That day, Gary Neville gives Sky’s man of the match award to both Salah and Foden. It’s the first and only time in the Premier League that a man of the match award to two players.

Well here, I’d like to give it to three. Bradley. Mac Allister. Endo.

I do love Mac Allister deeper but having him in front of Endo has unlocked what he can do in the box, as well. 

He isn’t entertained by what Liverpool produce in the first half. Because he himself is marvellous and keeps things ticking over so well.

He makes late runs into the box and then a moment later, he’s winning the ball back in the middle of the park.

The numbers that best sum up his performance are that he wins six duels yet also creates six chances.

He can do whatever you want him to do and he can be whatever the moment requires him to be. He thinks at the speed of light and his football IQ is off-the-scale.

An immaculate, sumptuous footballer.

It pains me to say this, but Mac Allister might be the signing we hoped and wanted Thiago to be.

And it speaks to how good Liverpool’s recruitment was last summer that Mac Allister probably isn’t even the best transfer of that window.

And I’m not talking about Dominik Szoboszlai either.

Wataru Endo.

If we can forget the first eight weeks or so and look at November onwards, he’s been pretty much faultless.

Here, he is phenomenal. 

How he wins some of the 50/50s he comes out on top of should be a module of study in GCSE P.E.

An absolute warrior in the middle of the park and Liverpool’s two league losses come without him playing, and he also misses the draw at Luton in November.

His most underrated trait is his passing, by the way. There’s a chipped through-ball in the first half for Diaz that is obscenely good.

He’s 31 and I’ve seen a few people saying it would be lovely if Liverpool had him five years younger, but the counter-argument to that point is that his experience is what’s given him such worldliness and a football brain.

After a tough first half where his decision-making lets him down, Gravenberch puts a great shift in in the second 45 and gets involved in the scrap. I didn’t really know he had it in him but it was certainly a welcome surprise.

He uses his body really well to shield the ball and keeps on working even when he loses it.

Elliott gets a lot better in the second half as well, and Diaz finally finds his shooting boots.

After Van Dijk forces Kaminski into one of the saves of the season, substitute Andy Robertson shows great tenacity to get his head to a loose ball and send it into Diaz’s path, and finally the winger wrong-foots Kaminski and slots home.

Robertson, despite being a sub, epitomises in this action what wins this game for  Liverpool - their ability and their spirit and their commitment.

The other subs as well - Bobby Clark buzzes around and stops any Luton momentum and Jayden Danns produces a neat turn and ball which results in Elliott curling home to round off the win.

Again, he has a mixed night, Elliott, and is largely awful from 20-60 but his effort for this club is something that never ever wavers.

That’s what everyone on that pitch and in this squad does. They work. They don’t give up. They’re indoctrinated into the Jurgen Klopp way. It’s like a bug that’s infected everyone.

The harder the circumstances, the more they relish it.

What a result. What a performance in the second half.

I’ve not even mentioned Joe Gomez who was just as consummate at left-back as he was at right-back and for me, would start the cup final on Sunday.

They’re a decent side, Luton. I hope they stay up. Rob Edwards shows some class with his comments after the game and his conversation with Danns on the pitch.

Teden Mengi is unbelievable in that first half and keeps on winning the battle against Diaz. He’s a good defender. I’ve already praised Kaminski and he would be top of my list for a Kelleher replacement in the summer, should that happen.

Alfie Doughty has all the makings of a squad player for a top-six club, Ogbene could be a weapon for anyone with his outrageous pace and putting his Everton-ness to one side, it’s great to see Ross Barkley playing the best football since his first few years on Merseyside.

They’re a competitive, knowledgeable outfit and they take some beating. 

Especially with ten first teamers gone.

There’s a lot I’ll miss about Jurgen Klopp but I think the thing that will most be missed is his fostering and culturing of an attitude into every single member of the Liverpool squad, from the first team down to the academy players.

No matter what the circumstances, they give it their absolute best shot.

Bradley and Quansah are the biggest examples of youth players making the step up this season and showing not just quality, but the way of thinking needed to play in this particular Liverpool team too.

There’s a sensational squad with a thrilling pool of youngsters bubbling underneath for Xabi Alonso, Ruben Amorim, Roberto De Zerbi or Thomas Frank.

The Liverpool side is patched up, but it stands up.

Every last one of them stands up and steps up.

They will not give this fight up.

The Luton game falls exactly a year on from a night which saw Liverpool race into a 2-0 lead against Real Madrid in the Champions League, before the Reds folded embarrassingly and rolled over for Real, allowing Karim Benzema, Toni Kroos and Luka Modric - a combined age of 108 - to humiliate Anfield and inflict a 5-2 scoreline.

Liverpool then went to the Bernabéu for the second leg and pressed the submit button, and lost 1-0 in a pathetic, cowardly performance that screamed ‘let’s not cause ourselves further shame’.

This was a Real side that were blown away two rounds later by Manchester City, by the way. They were nothing special.

A year on, and Liverpool are not just a much better team than then, but they’re a much more unified and together one, and their mentality is back and back in spades.

The manager has one of his best performances at the club tonight and whilst it’s not the opposition of Barcelona, the adversity for Liverpool is far greater.

But, Liverpool’s miracle-worker strikes again.

Daniel