Swansea City 1, Liverpool 2: First Thoughts

Swansea City 1 Fer 8’
Liverpool 2 Firmino 54’, Milner 83’ (PEN)

• PRE-MATCH: As expected, Klopp fields much the same starting line up, bar the fit Lovren coming in for Klavan. These 11 players would appear to be Klopp’s first choice, so it will be interesting to see them all playing together.
• Swansea start off well. They’re working around Liverpool’s press better than other teams have, and they had the first good chance of the game as well, with Borja Baston just nodding his header over the crossbar.
• Goal Fer 8’ - And as I write this, Fer scores on, predictably, a corner. It looked offside to me, but regardless, the goal stands, and Swansea lead. Not to rain on anyone’s parade, but Karius has now failed to save the first two shots on his goal in the league. Early days yet, of course, but he’s not making the barnstorming entrance that we’d all hoped. It will be interesting to see how the team reacts to this setback. They haven’t trailed in a game since Burnley last month.
• Now Lallana has gone off injured, so that was just the 20 minutes and one goal conceded for Klopp’s preferred set up then. Looks to be Sturridge coming on, which isn’t exactly a bad replacement, all told.
• That half was one to forget, yet at the same time felt uncomfortably familiar. Granted, Swansea came into this game with a point to prove, but Liverpool have been far to easy to roll over so far.
• HALFTIME: Liverpool failed to register a shot on target in the first half. However, we’ve seen how clinical these players can be, so it’s certainly possible that after Klopp gives them a kick at halftime they can get something out of this game, and maybe even steal a win.
• The Reds look better coming out of the gate at the restart. Mane and Sturridge combine together well, but the resulting shot is cleared.
• GOAL Firmino 54’ - Coutinho takes an uninspiring free kick, but his Henderson’s second attempt into the box finds the head of fellow Brazilian Firmino. Someone woke up Liverpool at halftime.
• Lots of good pressure from Liverpool now, as the Reds get another corner. This is the team we’ve gotten used to over the past four games. There’s still 30 minutes left for them to win this game - or concede a soft goal off of another set piece.
• Swansea have regained a bit of control by the 75th minute, thanks to some smart substitutions, and Liverpool are seeing less of the ball, conceding corners and generally giving me a heart attack. Wouldn’t mind seeing Can or Origi join in.
• GOAL Milner 83’ - Firmino gets tripped in the box and James Milner scores his fourth penalty in Liverpool’s seven games, becoming Liverpool’s top scorer. Penaltypool is back. Hard luck for Swansea City, though, who have once again played really well yet look set to lose.
• FINAL WHISTLE: A good result to take into the international break, though that first half performance will stick in the craw a bit. I’ll also be holding my breath until I hear about Adam Lallana’s fate.

We'll be back shortly to take an in-depth look at everything that happened in today's game with the full recap. Until then, let us know your take on the ups and downs of the match in the comments, and if you haven't already, join the community on the Liverpool Offside, where we'll have full coverage and lively in-game discussion for every match this season.