Crystal Palace 1 Liverpool 2 (Dec 9 2023)

[tlw content]

 

We’re top, but are we actually that good? It’s weird because the league table and results suggest we’re REALLY good, but the performances are giving us more questions than answers. I definitely don’t think that’s a bad thing at this stage because we’re clearly a work in progress and have a long way to go until Klopp has things humming the way he wants, yet we’re finding ways to win regardless of how we play or whatever roadblocks are put in our way.

 

Klopp said from 76 minutes to 105 we were really good, and before that we were really bad. That’s absolutely spot on isn’t it? We were atrocious for most of the game, even worse than the other night at Bramall Lane when I thought we were hideous. We had our problems against Fulham last weekend too but we’ve taken nine points regardless. There’s a saying in golf that “a scorecard doesn’t have pictures” and that applies here. The league table shows the points we have collected, it doesn’t show he we got them.

 

I’m struggling to work us out though. The record since Trent switched roles is the best in the league. We’ve got more points than anyone and I think we have the best goal difference too. So that tells you it’s working. But is it that simple? I don’t think it is. I’m not sure it is working because we’re often a bit shit in the first half of games and it’s quite common that it’s Klopp’s changes that turn the game our way.

 

How many of those points were gained because we were struggling and had to make changes, either to the system, personnel or both? Quite a lot I’d say. We finish games much better than we start them, so can we really say this system is the reason for our success when a lot of the time we’re getting results after abandoning it? Are the points we’re picking up because of the system, or in spite of it? It’s an interesting discussion I think. I don’t know yet, I need to see more before I’m convinced either way.

 

In the last week we’ve had to scrap the system to come back and beat Fulham and Palace. We did beat Sheffield United but looked shite for the entire game.  But we won all three games and it feels like we’re doing it through sheer willpower more than anything else. Nothing is coming easy to us.

 

I don’t see that as a negative though. Well, maybe a bit, but generally I think it’s a good thing because I don’t expect this patchy form to last and I’m sure we’ll be playing well again soon. If you are a talented team that can keep collecting maximum points even when you stink, you won’t go far wrong because when you play well you’ll blow a lot of teams away. The amount of times we could / should have dropped points this season only to pull it out of the fire is the stuff of Champions. That doesn’t mean we’ll win it, but it definitely helps.

 

Tired legs and the 12.30 kick off time contributed to this below par showing, plus I have to say that Palace did a really good job on us until that period of a minute or so when everything was turned on its head. Elliott came on, Ayew was sent off and then we scored. All of that happened in such a short space of time and it’s difficult to know which had the biggest impact. I’ll get to that though.

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[Anubis]

Here’s the angle of the Ayew foul not shown by TNT. A clear denial of a chance to break onto their back line. yellow all day long.

 

 

[Supremolad]

Very good article. It's true we were actually poor in this one at Palace. I still dont believe we were shite at Sheffield United though. That was a bog standard forgettable win away to a poor side who battled physically all through but actually barely created any chances against us. Such games tend to be scrappy and we won many in similar fashion in the title challenging seasons.

 

People just tend to forget because many of those wins are forgettable. City for example often have scrappy forgettable wins too (like against Luton today and Sheffield Utd earlier in the season) But many people believe City just roll over every bottom half opponent by 3 or 4 goals (they don't).

 

At this point, I reckon we could be Champions come May, and people would still be debating this inverted fullback system as an issue. Same way many fans criticised the functional, non creative midfield set up in previous title challenging seasons because we were not having convincing wins every week. 

[Creator Supreme]

Garth Crooks is whinging about the Ayew yellow, so it must have been the correct decision.

[Nunavut Patrick]

My Dad was a Palace fan, think my first words were ‘poor old Palace’. 

[Barnesey]

Awful place to get to, awful game to watch. No one (apart from Dave) mentions the context of the numerous yellow cards awarded to palace. They were in that mode of slowing the game down, time wasting over goal kicks, obstructing quick free kicks and going down with “cramp”. The ref did well to identify the issue and punish it accordingly - most don’t. 
 

and we started to play well when we increased the tempo and had a right back play wide right. Time was we had hendo, Trent and mo forming a triangle with a view to getting one of them beyond the back line. It doesn’t happen now with the inverted role but that’s where the first goal came from and, I’d argue, the second too. 
 

trent has an amazing range of passing on either foot but I’m not sure he can play in midfield. His body position is wrong to accept the ball, he’s often not available for a short pass from CB (bring back xabi) and, as we saw satdee, he can lose the ball taking the wrong option. Bring back plan A.

[fredo49]

They were committing 'tactical' fouls all game (wish we did a few more of them). Ayew's was one of those, I'd say. But nowadays people are always looking for a victim to virtue signal about, aren't they? It's everywhere, including sport...

 

On performances, I do think that fatigue is part of it. Look at Newcastle, Brighton, then West Ham recently - even the Scum. -The schedule is too much when you throw in international matches and favours teams not in Europe...?

[Kevin D]

Klopp seemed concerned, despite the victory. In the post match with TNT, he said something to the effect that it was worst winning performance he’d ever seen.

[Razoray]

12 hours ago, Anubis said:

Here’s the angle of the Ayew foul not shown by TNT. A clear denial of a chance to break onto their back line. yellow all day long.

 

 

That's a five v four if Ayew doesn’t commit the foul 

[Razoray]

We have finished a lot of games with a 442 formation, especially when we need a goal. Gakpo and Harvey have played on the right with Salah moving up top with Darwin/Gakpo/Jota. It gives natural width and a greater presence in the box if we do get a cross in. 

It does however, reduce the control in midfield so Klopp seems happy to start with a 433 and use it in an emergency only. It does help to have the width though. 

 

[sh#t waffle]

13 hours ago, Supremolad said:

Very good article. It's true we were actually poor in this one at Palace. I still dont believe we were shite at Sheffield United though. That was a bog standard forgettable win away to a poor side who battled physically all through but actually barely created any chances against us. Such games tend to be scrappy and we won many in similar fashion in the title challenging seasons.

 

Totally agree - we were as genuinely poor on Saturday as a lot of people seemed to think we were against Sheffield United.

[Dave D]

Did you leave Virgil out of the line up to appease Hodgson>

 

   Team: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Quansah (Konate), Tsimikas; Endo (Gomez), Szoboszlai (Jones), Gravenberch (Gakpo); Salah, Nunez (Elliott), Diaz:

[Peter Cormack]

Typical Hodgson performancefrom palace, followed by a typical “nothimg is my fault” interview; what a shithouse that man is. Good, balanced report Dave spot on about TNT’s commentator him and Mcmanamen together on Euro nights are absolute cringeworthy.