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Everyone knew how Sam Allardyce would place West Brom in Liverpool. Except, apparently, Jurgen Klopp.
By the time West Brom found its fully deserved EQ, the surgical mask that started just below Sam Allardyce’s nose and had slowly descended past a mouth that was chewing gum furiously for an hour and a half had doubled up like a chin strap. . To be fair, he made it a lot easier to read his lips by asking the soccer world if they wanted a ton of sauce on his generous servings of humble pie.
His little bags provided a much more severe defense against this infectious side of Liverpool than the fabric that apparently covered his face. Allardyce, the last visiting coach to win a Premier League match at Anfield, was not far from repeating that feat on Sunday.
That couldn’t have seemed like a further possibility after the opening half hour. Unsurprisingly, Liverpool dominated the ball and the chances, eight shots shone before West Brom had even one. Andy Robertson was a constant danger down the left and Sadio Mane’s goal was the kind of nimble grip we’ve come to expect and overlook.
But then came the pause. “I think that in the first half hour we could have lost the game, in the last 60 minutes we should have won it. In the end we get a point and that’s it ”, it was Jurgen Klopp valuation from the draw against Fulham a fortnight ago. With a hard-fought win against Tottenham and the crushing of Crystal Palace in the middle, this was a nasty reverse of a strong start followed by an inexcusably slow, flat and lifeless finish.
Curtis Jones is likely to come under fire for making the mistake that led to the awarding of the decisive corner with ten minutes to go. Joel Matip’s forced substitution due to injury also interrupted the hosts’ pace. But for too long there was no real address from Liverpool. They led at home with the support of a couple thousand fans against a relegation favorite team and still lacked control and cohesion.
Klopp fired into the opposition’s approach as usual before accidentally landing on the crucial spot. “I don’t think anyone can expect a team to play like West Brom with a ‘6-4’ (formation) in the first half,” He noticed, adding: “To be fair, West Brom did its job for exactly 90 minutes.”
Liverpool irrefutably did not. And Allardyce’s letters were barely close to his chest. If anything, he prides himself on putting his hand on the table and still coming out with his share of the pot.
Allardyce is undefeated at Anfield in his last 4 PL visits, each with different teams.
2-2 w Sun’land, February 2016 (29% chance, 7 shots to 16)
2-1 w Palace, April 2017 (28% chance, 7 shots to 14)
1-1 w Everton, December 2017 (21% chance, 3 shots vs. 23)
1-1 w WBA, December 2020 (22% chance, 5 shots vs. 17)– Fútbol365 (@ F365) December 27, 2020
His last four trips to Anfield with different teams each time have produced 22 shots and conceded 70, with an average possession of 25 percent and, more importantly, he had a win and three draws. West Brom defending deeply and as a unit to keep the score as close to level as possible before attempting to capitalize on a set piece play was hardly M. Night Shyamalan’s levels of intricate plot changes.
Klopp would do much better looking inside than blaming the other team and the coach for daring to come up with a tactic that successfully exposes his flaws. Liverpool’s substitutions came too late to change the momentum and Mane’s initial breakthrough seemed to give way to a collective oversight soon after, as if the main goal had been achieved and only side missions remained.
This is not a catastrophe – a three point gap remains at the top of the Premier League table and Newcastle provides ample opportunity for Liverpool to properly stretch their legs in the next game after this stop-and-go effort. But the last three games in which the Reds have lost points have come against teams currently at 16, 18 and 19. The fear they once induced has given way to a genuine belief, and proof, that his foreboding armor comes with its fair share of cracks to exploit.
Allardyce could still be the brave knight who comes to West Brom’s rescue, or the man who finally falls on his infamous sword in May. But it says a lot that he has his squad playing his tune so effectively in the space of 11 days as Klopp struggles to establish a consistent note from the band he has led for more than five years. The mask obviously hasn’t slipped, but you must be frustrated.
Matt stead
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