Postview: Spurs- 1 Liverpool- 2

Spurs- 1 Liverpool- 2

xG: Spurs- 1.01 Liverpool- 0.6

I thought we were really poor today and very lucky to get the win. Spurs had more shots than us (15 – 8) and were unfortunate not to get something from the game. Our xG stat underlines how clinical we were in front of goal today. We were lucky that they were as shit as us in the first half- the number of times that they passed the ball out of play under very little pressure was unbelievable. We also got some very cheap fouls early on in the game which stopped Spurs from building any momentum. I thought we looked off the pace in terms of pressing and we were pushed deep into our own half for extended periods at the start of the game. This doesn’t make any sense when you consider that we had a full week to prepare for the game.

Player Ratings:

• Alisson- 5. Looked a little unconvincing when he came out to claim through balls on 2 occasions.
• Bradley- 5. Thought he was unconvincing defensively today and didn't offer much going forwards.
• Konate- 6. Thought he was pretty dominant in the air and decent in possession.
• Van Dijk- 5. Completely fluffed a clearance he should have made for Spurs’ goal. Otherwise okay.
• Kerkez- 6. Thought he was okay in general and I think he prefers playing with Wirtz to Gakpo.
• Gravenberch- 5. He was dropping into the defensive line a lot in the first half when we were defending which I didn’t like. I don’t know if he was instructed to do that or if he did it of his own accord but I didn’t like us being that negative without the ball.
• Jones- 5. Was one of the few players whose pressing I was satisfied with in the first half but was weak in the challenge (lost 5 duels and won 1 according to StatMuse).
• Mac Allister- 5. Another disappointing performance from Macca whose main contribution was winning cheap fouls (2).
• Szoboszlai- 5. Thought that he struggled to make an impact going forwards.
• Wirtz- 7. Thought he was our most creative player and showed inventiveness on enough occasions to be above par. Got his assist too.
• Ekitike- 6. Was uncharacteristically loose in possession but scored a good goal.

Subs:

• Isak- 7. Managed to score in the fifteen minutes he played.
• Frimpong- 7. Looked really threatening when he came on- using his pace to good effect to get in positions to cross and out of tight spots.
• Chiesa- 6.

John Brooks (referee)- 8. I thought he got the big calls right but I think the cumulative total of minor decisions going our way greatly benefitted us. The 2 that come to mind are Mac Allister winning a very cheap foul from an aerial challenge with Romero which Spurs had the chance to break from and Bradley winning a foul in his own penalty area from Djed Spence for next to nothing. These 2 incidents occurred early on in the game so had a greater impact on the game. He’s still the only referee who has enraged me enough to stop watching a Liverpool game (Newcastle United away August 2023- the Nuñez game).