That looked more like the Liverpool we all know. Liverpool got off to a flying start in their return to Premier League football as they thrashed Aston Villa 3-1 to jump to 6th place in the table.
Where has that performance been hiding for the Reds all season long?
Liverpool looked like their old selves again as they utterly destroyed Unai Emery and his new team, Aston Villa, from pretty much the first minute of the game. Completely unfazed by Emery’s dogged defensive tactics and their own injuries up front, the Liverpool attack swarmed the Villa backline with a fury I haven’t seen since they nearly completed the Quadruple last season.
Sure, the Villa backline of Ezri Konsa, Tyrone Mings, Ashley Young, and Lucas Digne isn’t much of a challenge for the best teams in England, and Villa were without their World Cup winning goalkeeper, Emi Martinez, but that shouldn’t take away from how explosive Liverpool looked.
Liverpool nearly scored from a Darwin Nunez flick (or whatever he was trying to do in that situation) in the 1st minute of the game, and then they did score in the 5th minute off a Mo Salah tap-in. Though, the set-up from Andy Roberton’s hustle and Trent Alexander-Arnold’s fantastic crossing ability was the true majesty of that goal.
The way TAA can ping a ball from literally anywhere on the field and how Andy Robertson’s motor and will to get in behind defenses never waivers is truly something special, which allowed Mo Salah to get a simple tap-in in front of an empty net. They may not be having a great season by any stretch, but there is no denying that these two can still be the world’s best fullback partnership on their day.
Nevertheless, Aston Villa’s woes got worse as Liverpool only preceded to take over the game completely after the Mo Salah goal. The Reds ended up with 16 shots on goal, 9 on target, over 500 passes (507 to be exact) with an 82% completion percentage, 6X as many corners (6-0), and they controlled the ball with 53% possession vs. 47%.
Plus, Villa let up another goal from a corner (the Mo Salah one originally came from a corner) as Virgil Van Dijk somehow ended up on the receiving end of a ball that bounced off 6-8 players (I believe Mo Salah purposefully passed the ball to him), which he easily smashed past Robin Olsen, the backup Villa keeper, to essentially wrap up the game at 2-0 with only 35 minutes off the clock.
Easy as you like if you’re a Liverpool fan.
Yes, Villa played pretty well after those two goals as they had 6 shots on target, they were controlling the ball for the final 30 or so minutes of the game, and Ollie Watkins thumped a brilliant backfoot header from a great Douglas Luiz cross to get the score to 2-1, but Liverpool really should have killed off the game prior.
Mo Salah missed a 1 vs. 1, Fabinho just missed the right post with a 25+ yard curler, and Darwin Nunez couldn’t hit the broadside of a barn with a shot. I mean, seriously, a paralyzed person could have scored one of the chances that Nunez had today. Just comparing Nunez and his current play to a paralyzed person is an insult to that fictitious guy.
He really needs to start scoring or else Liverpool won’t get away with winning games like this against better teams. Or, even worse for him, he’ll get relegated to the bench when Diogo Jota and Luis Diaz come back from injury, or if Liverpool pick up another forward in the transfer window.
Nevertheless, it ended up being the 18-year-old Stefan Bajčetić who sealed this game for Liverpool as he dangled the ball past Robin Olsen after the keeper saved a Darwin Nunez shot (what a surprise) and then slipped it through Tyrone Mings legs (again, how surprising) for Liverpool’s 3rd and crucial goal.
From the limited minutes I saw of Bajčetić today, the young Spanish midfielder might have a chance of breaking into this Liverpool midfield sooner than later. He clearly has good ball-control, a low center of gravity, and he was quite composed in defense.
Jordan Henderson is only getting older by the year, Fabinho is probably going to get moved on due to his friction with Jurgen Klopp, and Thiago is not a CDM, thus leaving a wide-open spot for Stefan Bajčetić if he is serious and dedicated enough to take it.
Speaking of open spots, this win now gives Liverpool a glimpse into the Top-4 as they now sit in 6th place on 25 points, just 4 behind Spurs having played a game less. Liverpool has the chance of making it into the Top-4, but they need to get a run going. Now.
As for Villa, it will take time for Unai Emery to rid the club of the legacy Steven Gerrard’s managerial stain.
PS: Liverpool must be feeling the same way as I do about Nunez as they have just signed forward Cody Gakpo from PSV.
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