Football News: Liverpool v Brentford

Liverpool v Brentford

That was so much better! Against a team that regularly plays with high intensity, Liverpool not just matched them for it, they bettered them. And, make no mistake about it, Liverpool completely bettered Brentford in every aspect of that game. Once Liverpool opened the scoring, that game was very comfortable as Brentford never really looked like creating anything against a Liverpool defence that was fired up. Van Dijk is approaching his best once more and Matip, after a poor performance mid-week, got the bit between his teeth after a horrible decision by the referee to give a foul against him for, well I am not sure actually what it was given for. It was clear the Brentford player just smashed into him and the foul was the other way round, if there was any foul there, and then to compound it, Matip’s incredulous reaction got him booked. All that did was fire up the amiable defender to play at his best level.

It was not just the defending that was good, and the goalkeeping (as always), but the general play was much better. The press was there to put them under pressure and the passing was much crisper, especially when put under pressure by Brentford’s attempt to press mistakes at the back. There were risks taken, but they paid off and it put Brentford’s players out of position to open up spaces to attack them. It was only really after Liverpool were three up and dropping off into cruise mode that Brentford were able to get at Liverpool. Up until that third goal went in, they were completely outmatched. That was the kind of performance Klopp’s teams used to produce almost every week and it must be hoped that it will be the blueprint moving forward.

For all Thomas Frank’s fingerwagging every time he disagreed with a decision, his team were completely outmatched and he did not seem to have any answer to that. It does get tedious watching Frank on the sidelines whining about every physical challenge on his players when his team are among the worst teams in the Premier League for skating on the edge of legality. They are the ones you know will be pulling, pushing, arriving late with challenges and anything else which will give them an edge over an opponent, regardless of whether it is within or without of the rules. Instead of moaning about the referee, who if anything favoured them as Tierney is wont to do with anyone who is playing against Liverpool, Frank should be thanking his lucky stars that a clear penalty was not given against…