This Low Key Slaps

Liverpool FC 3, Southampton FC 1 (21 wins, 7 draws, 1 loss, 70 points, 1st place)

Photo credit: noticiascaracol

It became obvious around the quarter hour mark when Trent conceded a corner kick off token pressure that it was going to be one of those games. The Reds, coming off a run of games that saw them face 3 of the top 10 sides in the Prem, along with a first leg of Champions League play against PSG where they stole a win against the run of play, were playing a tie that had the makings of being a match where they played down to the level of their competition. All week there was talk of Southampton challenging Derby County for the worst point total in Premier League history, while the Reds kept chugging along, piling up the results against top shelf competition. If there was a match where the Reds were to put in a poor shift, this tie was a prime candidate.

So when the Saints got their third corner kick to 1 for Liverpool, it confirmed the Reds were not on their C game, let alone an acceptable mark. The hope as we went into stoppage time was to head into halftime with the score knotted at nil-nil. But some lackadaisical play on the parts of Virgil and Alisson resulted in the unfortunately named William Smallbone slotting home a goal for Southampton, megging Becker in the process. Visions of Liverpool’s improbable 3-0 loss to a relegation-bound Watford in 2020 came to mind, and it truly sucked. Not in a oh, we’re gonna bottle the league way, but in a it would really and truly suck to lose to a relegation bound side during a PL season when we’ve lost once thus far kind of way.

But we’ve got the best fookin’ manager in the world (yep, I’m going there, Pep had a legendary run), and the Reds quickly brushed the Saints aside in the second half. I fully expected Slot to make the substitutions we saw, but was pleasantly surprised with how quickly he acted.

He brought in Macca, Harvey and Robbo at the start of the second half, and Diogo was subbed in at 68 minutes after Darwin got his goal to draw the Reds level. In fact, it only took 9 minutes of focused football during the opening minutes of the second half for the Reds to score the two goals that locked in all three points and a 16 point lead atop of the table.

That’s the ruthless behavior of sides that win trophies.

My big concern with Núñez was the caution he received late in the first half. Darwin giveth the goal contributions and taketh the cautions, so it tends to be one extreme or the other, and my biggest concern was being down a man as the Reds tried to claw back all three points. But Slot stuck with him and Núñez rewarded the gaffer’s patience with a nifty tap in goal off a delicious pass from Lucho at the 51 minute mark. Mo Salah did the rest of the work, blasting two penalty kicks past Aaron Ramsdale in front of the Kop.

So what was expected to be a routine win ended up becoming one, but only after the squad did what championship teams do: put in the work to lock in a result. At this point in time, with 9 games remaining, the Reds are a 92 point team. A combo of the Reds claiming points and Arsenal dropping points places the current magic number for Liverpool to claim the Premier League title at 18 points.

Player Thoughts

Lucho

Lucho was my man of the match. He was relentless in the attacking third, generating the assist on Darwin’s goal and was also involved in the second penalty kick as he pressured Yukinari Sugawara which resulted in the Saints’ right back chicken winging the ball in the penalty area to control it’s path.

Díaz was accurate on 91% of his passes, had 6 key passes, and created 2 big chances. Mo and Darwin are in the convo for MOTM, but I rated Lucho’s overall quality as the deciding factor.

Photo credit: Sky Sports

Darwin Núñez

Darwin built off his strong performance against PSG, and with his tap in goal to draw the Reds level, he’s made the case to be in the Starting XI during the home leg CL tie against PSG. He also 'drew’ the foul that resulted in the first penalty kick which gave Liverpool their first lead of the game and ultimately resulted in the Reds claiming all three points.

The caution shortly after Liverpool conceded to Southampton was obviously a poor decision, but it’s clear he has carved out a role no other center forward can fill. While I’ve made the case for him as a super sub, he’s proven capable as an occasional starter. Credit to him for responding after being called out by Slot for his unacceptable work rate in the tie against Villa.

Mo Salah

On the one hand, both of Mo’s goals were penalty kicks; on the other, his consistency is really something else. He’s so good at varying his placement of his shot, and even if the keeper guesses correctly, it’s placed with such velocity that it often makes no difference what the keeper does.

The only real concern I’ll voice is that Mo isn’t as lethal in open play as he’s been over his entire career at Liverpool. There was a moment in the game when Alisson made a save and hit a quick sidewinder in Mo’s direction. That combo has resulted in so many quality chances if not goals over the years, but Salah doesn’t seem to have the pace anymore to put fear in opposing backlines.

The Egyptian King, however, has been brilliant at evolving his game, and his assist totals are elite, currently sitting at 99th percentile. His take ons and progressive carries, which is how he earned his rep at Liverpool, are now pedestrian, but he’s on track to crush many PL records this season. How is this possible?

His football IQ is among the very best the league has ever seen, which makes me cautiously optimistic about how his game will age.