West Bromwich Albion 0, Liverpool 1: First Thoughts

West Bromwich Albion 0

Liverpool 1 Firmino 45’+1

• Pre-Match Thought: Happy Easter, everyone! We’re got our current injury-coping Best XI out against a West Brom team who haven’t been beaten by us on their home patch since... 2011, I think? Should be interesting.
• Aaaaaaand we’re off! Liverpool doing the honors of nudging the ball first.
• WBA already with a good chance inside two minutes. Robson-Kanu can’t get his feet right.
• Origi runs into trouble on the left, manages to shimmy his way out of it. Love that kid.
• Gotta hand it to West Brom right now— they’re the ones actually taking shots.
• Both teams are doing something resembling Route 1 now and all they’ve got to show for it is some offsides calls.
• Firmino played through, takes a shot, and it’s juuuuuust wide at the far post.
• Christ Brunt has this super short hair cut that inexplicably has a thicker tuft right where forehead meets skull. It’s kinda freaking me out, to be honest.
• Liverpool get a corner! And nothing happens.
• The Reds are getting the better of this press-off going on. West Brom making a couple mistakes. Good stuff.
• Lucas, who is beautiful and perfect, gets a stern talking-to from the official for being too beautiful and perfect.
• A ball sent over the top lands right in front of Coutinho, who one-times it but can’t quite get enough on it.
• Jamez Thrillner is having none of your shenanigans. Think about all the shenanigans you’ve got on offer right this moment, and then forget it, because the Millnernator won’t tolerate it today.
• Liverpool being a bit too timid in the final third. Coutinho hungry to rush in but the wide players keep moving to cross or find a pass and then chickening out.
• Robson-Kanu is doing scary stuff in front of goal. I don’t like it. I’m going to start a change.org petition to make him stop it.
• A side managed by Tony Pulis should not be this good at clocking Coutinho and Firmino.
• I don’t mind Liverpool trying to be clever but they should know by now that it doesn’t work against Pulis teams.
• Nathaniel Clyne absolutely bulldozed and is slow getting up. Cool, cool cool cool.
• Brunt, with his inexplicable tuft of hair, gets a yellow card for pulling on Clyne’s shirt.
• ... seriously though, it looks like his forehead has a goatee.
• FIRMINOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
• Thrillner sends in a long free kick, Lucas heads it on, and Bobby Firm heads it into the net. Good stuff good stuff!
• And that’s basically the last kick of the half!
• Halftime Thought: Kind of a weird half, mostly boring with moments of dread. But the goal right at the end changes the complexion.
• Back for the second half, WBA have a free kick, and Joel Matip is being Unjustly Maligned.
• Robson-Kanu gets a booking for being too... West Brom-y, I guess would be the term.
• A pass up the left wing splits Liverpool’s back line (a bit too easily) and Robson-Kanu runs onto it but all he gets for his trouble is an offside flag.
• It turns out Firmino does an okay fullback impersonation.
• Oh, gosh. Firmino played through, sends a cross to the far post that’s set up perfectly for Milner, but his half-volley ends up in the stands.
• All in all a strong start to the second half so far for the Dead Sexy Reds.
• Another chance for Milner! Cheese Louise!
• James Morrison— the footballer, not the singer— is replacing Nacer Chadli.
• Coutinho tees up a shot outside the box but, alas, it’s off to keep Milner’s previous shots company.
• Double switcheroo! Solomon Rondon on for Robson Kanu and James McClean on for Claudio Yacob. Half an hour left and no more substitutes. We’re Pulis’ing pretty hard right now.
• Coutinho brutally thrown to the ground, gets a FK for his trouble and Jonny Evans goes in the scary black book. Matip tries to head on from the set piece but it’s wide of the post.
• These jawns can’t keep their grubby hands off Divock Origi smdh.
• Lucas gets his yellow. Whoever had 72’ in the pool, come get your toaster oven.
• West Brom trying to get back into it. Liverpool holding steady... for now.
• Livermore just barrels into Origi, because that’s what passes for defending these days. Origi’s shirt is torn in the front but he’s going to keep playing, I guess.
• ... honestly I’d rather he Liverless, you know?
• Anyway the FK turned into corner and then another corner and then another corner. Maybe this is just our lives now. Corner after corner after... nope, no more corners, back into open play.
• Flagrantly rejecting my helpful suggestion, LiverMORE flashes the ball across goal. It’s out into touch, but, eesh.
• That stand must be magnetized because a lot of Liverpool shots are ending up there. Emre Can with the latest contribution.
• Oh. Oh wow. WBA unzip the back line, Phillips clean through on goal, but Mignolet manages to bat it away.
• Ok, so, it’s the 81st minute and I’m officially scared.
• Sturridge coming on for Origi.
• D-Studge’s haircut is <fire emoji>, which bodes well for us.
• Rondon’s offside call breaks up West Brom’s attack. Stalling for time now, basically. Still got two substitutes.
• Up by one goal with time running out and the opposition lingering outside the box and our defenders have to try and be cute with their clearances.
• West Brom get a corner right as regulation ends.
• Four minutes of stoppage time. I am Afraid.
• Alberto Moreno on for Coutinho. Maybe this will be ok?
• West Brom with another corner and Ben Foster is up for it.
• Foster is caught out! 3-man counter attack on an empty net!
• And... Moreno shoots from 30 yards and sends it into touch. Awesome.
• Liverpool under effing siege right now.
• Another empty net and Liverpool do nothing with it.
• But it doesn’t matter! We won!
• Final Whistle Thought: Gosh, that was scary at the end. But we beat West Brom on their ground and we’re up to third. I’ll take it.

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.