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Liverpool have won again. That’s 20 wins from 21 matches. One draw. Zero losses. That’s 61 points from 63 possible. That’s incredible. There’s just 17 league matches left in this season. Drink it in. Cherish this. We’re at the gates of the land of milk and honey.
You can look at this particular win in at least one of two ways. There’s things to be encouraged about and to be worried about. I suspect you can tell a lot about a person by what they’re choosing to focus on after Liverpool’s win 1-0 over Tottenham. You’re not going to hear me tell you it was Liverpool’s best performance of the season, but I will tell you it’s probably not as bad some will make it out to be. They were certainly poor for long stretches of the game, but Jose Mourinho’s Tottenham are a good side. There’s the here and now, and there’s the bigger picture. There’s three points to be had right now, and Liverpool took home all of them. Sometimes, in games like this, it doesn’t really matter how you get those points.
I am officially running out of things to say about this team. Which, when you have to write these things week after week, is a little unfortunate. There are a few things that stuck out from the win over Tottenham. Let’s take a look at those things.
Winners
Alisson Becker
It’s always been funny to me that the clean sheet stat gets credited to the goalkeeper. Obviously, more goes into making sure your opponents score zero goals in a match than just the contributions from a goalkeeper. But today, those contributions from Liverpool’s number one were absolutely massive. The stat sheet will tell you that he only made 4 saves all match, but the best contributions he made don’t show up there. When Tottenham were in control of the second have Alisson kept things calm at the back by holding onto the ball in key moments. I’m convinced that Lo Celso missed because Alisson got in his head.
Adam Lallana
There’s a time not that long ago when seeing Lallana’s number come up on the substitution board brought along dread for Liverpool fans. That’s no longer the case. When Liverpool needed someone to calm things down, Lallana came on and offered the Reds some much needed assurance on the ball. Not only that, but he offered fresh legs and a willingness to tackle that was lacking. It’s hard to contend for man of the match as a sub unless you do something incredible, but I think Lallana’s performance was that good.
Front 3
Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino, and Mo Salah are all extremely talents footballers in their own right. But once they combine their powers they’re nearly unstoppable. Against Tottenham, they were sensational. Bobby gets his goal. Mo gets the assist. Sadio was dangerous all match. Looks like the rest has done them good.
Losers
Joe Gomez
It feels harsh to put Gomez in the category because he’s had 10 cleansheets in his last 11 appearances across all comps, but he had a particularly poor game against Tottenham. He was constantly caught under the ball in the air and on the wrong side of attackers. It’s okay, Joe. You’re allowed to have a bad game. Just don’t do it again.
Thin bench
Aside from Lallana, Liverpool’s bench didn’t offer much when they needed to kill of the game. Thankfully the calvary is coming up the hill and the injuries in the squad are mending.
What Happens Next?
Liverpool host Manchester United next Sunday. A fixture that needs no introduction or explanation.
17 matches to go. To glory. Up the Reds.