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Liverpool 2-1 Sheffield United: Jurgen Klopp praises opposite number Chris Wilder
They were made to work for it, but Liverpool’s staggering undefeated streak at Anfield continues after their comeback win against Sheffield United on Saturday.
Goals from Roberto Firmino and Diogo Jota in a 2-1 win over the Blades ensured the Reds avoided the first sequence of three winless Premier League matches since May 2018.
After a 7-2 loss to Aston Villa and a 2-2 draw against Everton in the Merseyside derby, there may have been concern on the bench as the Blades took a 13th-minute lead at Anfield.
But there’s a reason why Jurgen Klopp’s team has racked up a 62-game unbeaten home run streak in the league.
The Reds, without injured defensive stalwart Virgil van Dijk, have now won 28 of their last 29 league games at Anfield, while also being unbeaten in their last 13 at home when they conceded the first goal.
“I love these games as you win everything else. You win the easier games when everything goes your way on nights like this,” Liverpool manager Klopp said.
“You always have to work hard against Sheffield United. Chris Wilder is hard to accept. They never give up, I respect him so much. They go back and forth. Chris is doing a wonderful job.”
Reds get by without Van Dijk
With Van Dijk potentially out for the season after sustaining a cruciate ligament injury in a challenge from Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford, it’s up to center-backs Joe Gomez and Joel Matip, along with defensive midfielder Fabinho, to stay strong.
Brazilian international Fabinho was again a substitute in central defense alongside Gómez, as he did in his 1-0 Champions League win over Ajax on Wednesday, but despite that excellent performance, he was to blame for the first match when he fouled Oliver McBurnie inside the penalty area.
“Fabinho has played there before and he can do a good job but he is not going to replace Van Dijk because nobody can do that. But he will do well,” former Premier League defender Micah Richards told the BBC Match of the Day .
Liverpool have already conceded 14 goals in their first six Premier League games this season, a mark that took them 15 matches to reach in the 2019-20 season.
Captain Jordan Henderson said: “It was difficult as expected, they are a good team that works very hard.
“McBurnie was very good in the air, so it was difficult for the guys in the back, but they managed and solved it better in the second half. We should have finished the game with another goal or two.
“I am only interested in the mentality in our dressing room and I see hunger, resistance, character to work and win if you are not playing in the best way. We show that we can go deep and see results.
Liverpool 2-1 Sheffield United: Chris Wilder says defeat was ‘hard to accept’ Was Liverpool lucky?
The victory moves Liverpool to the points level with Merseyside neighbor Everton, who have a game in hand, at the top of the table, but they had to play their luck at times against an energetic Blades team. .
United were full of energy in the early stages and had two more penalty appeals rejected in the first half, one for a hand from Andrew Robertson and one for a challenge to McBurnie.
“They could have given us another one, but they didn’t,” Chief Chris Wilder said.
“He’s not expected to dominate at Anfield, but we did more than enough to get something out of that. We brought the game to our opponents.”
Although full of praise for Wilder’s team, Klopp disagreed with the decision to award the visitors a penalty for Fabinho’s challenge on McBurnie.
“It wasn’t even a foul,” he said. “During a season there are so many different periods. We have had an injustice and we have had to go again.
“Now it’s the sixth game of the season and in three of them we’re on the wrong side of these kinds of decisions. It’s not that we want to have an advantage, we just don’t want to have any disadvantage. The penalty we awarded gave Sheffield a proper boost. “.
Source: bbc.com
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