MAGS TOLD TO BE ON FRONT FOOT NEXT TIME
LIVERPOOL 2 NEWCASTLE UTD 0: BENITEZ LOOKS FOR POSITIVE PERFORMANCE AGAINST SAINTS
Rafa Benitez says Newcastle United must go on the attack against Southampton.
Benitez’s side spent much of Saturday’s 2-0 defeat to Liverpool on the back foot.
Goals from Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane saw Jurgen Klopp’s Reds comfortably win a one-sided contest.
Relegation-threatened Newcastle are just a point ahead of Southampton, and the home game is followed by a 21-day day break.
Benitez – who fielded a five-man defence at Anfield – felt that his team “controlled” the game before Salah’s 40th-minute opener, though they did not test goalkeeper Loris Karius until shortly before the break.
The Magpies, without injured midfielder Jonjo Shelvey, were poor on the counter-attack. Against Saints, Newcastle will need to get on the front foot.
“It’s obvious they are different teams, different scenarios,” said Benitez.
“So it’s not the same when you play away against one of the top teams in the Premier League than when you play at home against one of the teams in your position more or less. (It) was just to make sure we had good control and then play counter attack.
“We were not a real threat in the first haf, but we were controlling the game so they didn’t have clear chances, just at the end a corner situation – nothing else.
“We were happy with that, but we were still not very happy (overall), because we have to create more.
“Obviously, Southampton will be different. We play at home with our fans behind us. We have to attack and we have to create chances.”
The game against Southampton, and the March 31 fixture against Huddersfield, have huge significance. “Obviously, every game’s important to us, but in these types of games, against the teams close to us, we have to do well,” said Benitez.
Liverpool made the breakthrough five minutes before the break.
When Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain burst onto a loose ball, Newcastle centre-back Jamaal Lascelles was drawn to the midfielder, affording the summer signing plenty of space to slip a pass to his right where Salah promptly slotted through Martin Dubravka’s legs.
A superbly incisive move cut through the visitors for the second goal on 55 minutes and was finished with aplomb by Mane, a fitting way to bring up Anfield’s 300th Premier League win. The goal was also the 200th in Klopp’s 97th league game in charge. Since he was appointed in October 2015 only Manchester City (214) have scored more.