Fabinho was superb, mopped up most that came his way. I thought VVD was a little rattled for some reason; moaning to either his teammates or the referee throughout the first half. Seemed to stand off Pepe a few times too, he'd normally just dismiss them. Hendo and Wijnaldum needed to do more imo but were generally okay. Arsenal only came onto us in the last ten minutes because (a) we took our foot off the gas, and (b) we took Mane & Bobby off which remove our "defend from the front" mentality.
I noticed VVD stood off Pepe a few times but I guess he was sizing him up. Even then, VVD dealt with him. Hendo is Hendo. He was at fault for 2-3 potentially key moments including the goal. Gini continues to be a frustrating figure. Both will graft and put in a shift. 3 wins out of 3. Can’t ask for much more
3/3 who’s next? We controlled most of this game but still coughed up a few chances.....I think we always will with the way we play.
McCunty is fuming we didn't drop points yet "For all the talent there is a giant streak of liability running straight through him. This was liability Luiz."
This was pissing me off too, were acting as if we were heavily under pressure and Pepe was bossing us... apart from hendo’s error that put him through, I just saw a lot of balls down the channel that we were comfortable with. Desperate stuff
Klopp may have taken him to another level. I really do not understand why players dont see this. Not all but generally Klopp, Guardiola and even Poch take players and make them and make them better. Personally i think Pepe will get better under emery too. Had ford stayed i think atm he would be a very different player
I've no basis for this but I reckon Pepe is going to be one that needs to be playing every week as one of the main guys. He wouldn't get that with us
^^this or else he forms a team / system which enables the players he has to perform to their optimum. After all while Mane ,Salah ,VVD may have been considered good players they are now rated at another level .
Its easy to turn down a club that never bid for you. I turned down Barcelona today, granted they probably don't even know I exist, but still I turned them down cause I said I did.
One player not being discussed as much is one Joel Matip. Origi became a cult hero after digging in and getting back to the first team but our Cameroon lad is the most improved player from last season and he has gone on to keep the high standards he set last season. As a free agent, he is the best value for money player Klopp has signed when you look at how much CBs are going for. We have two CBs who can pass it out so effortlessly and help trigger our wing play. Gomez was brilliant before his injury and will need to up his game big time to take back his slot.
Let’s hope he signs an extension soon. I think his current deal expires at the end of this season. Agreed that he has improved a lot since he came back into the team.