This was almost as forgettable as the first game, but at least it’s over now. It was pretty dire once again, but we’re through and that’s the main thing. The young lads battled well and can hold their heads up, but once more they were let down by the senior players who were supposed to make their job easier.
Daniel Sturridge, Divock Origi and to a slightly lesser extent Phil Coutinho were all shite. Presumably they looked at this as some sort of training game, because none of them looked like the players we know they are. It seemed more of a pre-season friendly to them than an FA Cup tie. Had any of them shown up this would have been a lot easier. Had all of them shown up then we’d have battered Plymouth.
Initially I had some sympathy for Sturridge as no-one was getting him the ball despite him getting into good areas and making some clever runs. He looked dangerous early on and should have had a penalty when he was clipped as he turned inside after collecting a good pass from Coutinho.
The ref got that wrong, and pissed Sturridge off even more when he then got in the way of a pass that would have set us on the counter attack, and Plymouth almost scored from it. Karius (who was decent once again) had to make a flying stop to keep out a long range effort, but the ref would have had an assist if that had gone in. He seemed to be in the way a hell of a lot I thought, and several times our lads had to delay a pass because he was hovering around them like a star struck kid.
Sturridge seemed engaged in the game in the first half but by the time he was eventually hauled off with twenty minutes or so left he was doing my head in. He was sloppy and at times a bit greedy, although it’s somewhat understandable he’d get that way given how he was starved of service. The ridiculous side foot, weak as piss volley from a tight angle was just shameful though. He was never going to score from there, but if you’re having a go then at least hit the fucking thing. It looked like a misplaced backpass it was so poor. That was a sign of his frustration.
I really thought when I saw the team Klopp had picked that we’d win this by at least three goals, but I wasn’t factoring in the stinkage factor of the players who were supposed to be the match winners.
Origi was even worse than Sturridge. He carried on from where he left off in his last few appearances and was absolutely terrible in the first half. He was a bit better after the break as he stopped giving it away quite so much, but him missing that late penalty was not in the least bit surprising. I don’t even know why he took it, as I don’t think anyone - including Origi - thought he was going to score. And maybe it’s just me, but I didn’t think that was a pen in a million fucking years, as Moreno had already got his shot away and had launched it into orbit before he was taken out. By the letter of the law you can give it, but… not for me, Clive.
I’m not sure what Origi’s problem is. He had a great run of seven goals in eight games or something but he’s been abysmal ever since. It’s annoying because with Mané away we need him and Sturridge to show some form and they’re both looking terrible. They should be absolutely ruining a League Two defence. How can they be this ineffective?
Coutinho wasn’t anywhere near as bad as them but he did fuck all too other than take the corner from which Lucas scored the only goal of the game. For some reason he kept trying to play long passes with his left foot, when his left foot is a bit shite.
Still, the hour runout he got will do him good and it made sense to play him. It made even more sense to take him off as a precaution, even though the game was still well in the balance. For him it was just a warm up game, but for Origi and Sturridge it should have been an opportunity to stake a claim for a starting place on Saturday. I reckon both probably played themselves out of contention.
Harry Wilson replaced Coutinho and looked good in the time he was on. He showed a few lovely touches and I’m made up to see him finally get a chance. We looked better when him and Ojo came on than we did with Sturridge and Coutinho in the side, which probably says more about the experienced pair than it does the young lads.
The main thing was getting through, but it’s disappointing we didn’t wipe the floor with them given how some of their fans carried on. Singing about Steven Gerrard? What the fuck did Stevie ever do to them? Small time wankers. Even worse was when some morons booed the travelling Reds when they were singing YNWA after the minute’s applause for the poor lad who died. They were singing it for one of yours, you absolute stupid bastards!! In fairness, they had about eight thousand part timers who wouldn’t normally be there for League Two games, so maybe it was them who embarrassed themselves.
Their players can hold their heads up, especially the defenders (Sonny Bradley was a colossus, just as he was for the three seasons I managed him at Portsmouth on Footy Manager!) and over the two games we hardly ever looked like scoring. The fact we needed Lucas of all people to break the deadlock says it all.
His reaction was great, just a mixture of joy and shock. Unlike the other ‘old heads’ he had a good game and did what was required of him. So did Gomez alongside him, especially as he had to play for most of the game on a booking which was even more ludicrous than the one Lovren got on Sunday against the mancs. The more games he gets the better, as he looks quality.
Star man was Alexander-Arnold though, who didn’t do much going forward but was defensively excellent, with one last ditch saving challenge in the first half being particularly crucial. It’s been quite a week for him.
It’s easy to pick holes in the performance but ultimately none of it is particularly important (except maybe the massive slump Origi has fallen into). It’s all good though, as we’ve progressed to the next round while resting virtually all of the first team (we saw out the game with six teenagers on the pitch), several young lads have gained valuable experience and fringe players got some much needed match practice.
And of course we got to see Lucas scoring, proving that the magic of the cup is alive and well.
Team: Karius; Alexander-Arnold, Gomez, Lucas, Moreno; Woodburn, Stewart, Ejaria Coutinho (Wilson); Origi, Sturridge (Ojo):
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