Salah comes to the rescue of sloppy Liverpool
Jurgen Klopp once complained his side does not play poorly and win. It is a claim he is having to refine more often during this most curious start to the season. Liverpool remain a combination of the promising, effective and utterly infuriating yet there they are, level on points with Manchester City and rewriting club records.
Mohamed Salah claimed his 50th goal in English football – 48 for Liverpool, two for Chelsea – to defeat Huddersfield and by keeping a clean sheet, Klopp’s side achieved what none at Anfield has done before. Never in 126 years has a Liverpool team conceded three goals or less in its first nine league games. Have the swashbucklers become the bus-parkers? Not quite, but it is some makeover.
As a package, there is much to commend as Liverpool try to ensure City do not repeat last season and begin their surge for the title in autumn. That cannot disguise the fact this win was scarcely deserved.
Klopp’s gesturing and scolding throughout a sloppy 90 minutes underlined Huddersfield’s ill-luck, the home side particularly enraged by the failure to award a penalty against James Milner shortly before half-time.
When friends Klopp and David Wagner embraced at the end, Liverpool’s coach looked almost apologetic.
“It may be the first period in my life we win average matches,” said Klopp. “There are different ways to win. I prefer the spectacular way, but I understand why it was how it was. A lot of the things we couldn’t do today was because Huddersfield were good, but when they couldn’t do anything any more, we helped with rubbish passes. I was more animated today because if you are tired you still have to be afraid of your manager.”
Liverpool have never performed so inconsistently and won so often in the Klopp era. While Salah again took the glory, not for the first time this season victory owed more to Virgil van Dijk’s composure at the back – ably assisted by Dejan Lovren.
Aside from the exquisite move for the winner created by Xherdan Shaqiri, the once trustworthy attackers squandered every counter-attacking threat, displaying an uncanny ability to overhit, misplace or simply not bother to make the final pass.
In mitigation, this was a changed Liverpool line-up. Sadio Mane was absent because of his broken hand and Roberto Firmino was a substitute.
Adam Lallana was starting for the first time since Jan 1, Daniel Sturridge was starting his first Premier League game for Liverpool for 10 months.
The post denied Huddersfield’s Jonathan Hogg after he beat Alisson from 25 yards. The linesman’s flag stopped Alex Pritchard’s celebrations. And the generosity of referee Michael Oliver denied Huddersfield a chance to equalise when Milner looked sheepish after the ball struck his hand three minutes before half-time. The officials did not see it.
“If it is a case luck evens itself out we will have a lot of luck over the next 29 games – we have had no luck so far,” said Wagner. “Goalscoring is the most difficult part of this game.”
Huddersfield had set about Liverpool with little consideration for reputation. It was a risky strategy that made for an exciting but low quality game. Georginio Wijnaldum’s introduction at half-time – Jordan Henderson left with a hamstring injury – brought composure and Salah should have doubled his tally in 64 minutes, inches wide when facing keeper Jonas Lossl. Liverpool’s lead was precarious. Punishment should have been severe, substitute Steve Mounie failing from close range in 82 minutes. It was his side’s last chance. They had the right application but lacked quality. Nevertheless, the sight of Liverpool players running to the corner flag to see out time told the story of the game. Winning without playing well can only sustain a challenge for so long. “The basis is brilliant – 23 points and still space for improvement,” said Klopp. There is plenty for optimists and cynics to pounce on with Liverpool’s current form.
Huddersfield Town (4-3-3) Lossl 6; Zanka 7, Schindler 7, Lowe 7, Hadergjonaj 6 (Mbenza 68); Hogg 8 (Diakhaby 90), Mooy 7, Billing 7 (Mounie 68); Pritchard 7, Durm 6, Depoitre 7. Subs Hamer (g), Bacuna, Van La Parra, Stankovic. Liverpool (4-3-3) Alisson 7; Gomez 7, Lovren 8, Van Dijk 8, Robertson 7; Milner 7 (Firmino 78), Shaqiri 6, Henderson 6 (Wijnaldum 46); Lallana 6 (Fabinho 69), Sturridge 6, Salah 7. Subs Mignolet (g), Origi, Matip, Alexander-Arnold. Booked Lallana Referee Michael Oliver (Northumberland).