Liverpool may have a dire record against teams towards the bottom of the table this season, but at least they were unlikely to continue their four-match losing streak in the league. Despite putting in a great season last year, Sheffield United sit rock bottom of the Premier League with just three wins to their name.
Jürgen Klopp was forced into making two changes to the team that lost to Everton. The injury that forced Jordan Henderson off in the derby is serious, requiring surgery, so Nathaniel Phillips stepped in to partner Ozan Kabak, while Alisson Becker missed out due to a family tragedy and Caoimhin Kelleher is struggling with an injury, giving Adrian another chance in goal. They set up in their usual 4-3-3 formation.
Chris Wilder made two changes to the team that lost to Fulham, as Chris Basham and Billy Sharp were replaced by Oliver Norwood and David McGoldrick. The Blades lined up in their usual 3-5-2 shape.
Liverpool would build up in a 3-2-5 shape. Trent Alexander-Arnold would stay back alongside Phillips and Kabak, while Thiago Alcântara dropped in next to Georginio Wijnaldum at the base of the midfield. Ahead of them Sadio Mané moved into the centre, leaving space for Curtis Jones and Andy Robertson to push up on the left.
Rather than sitting back and making themselves difficult to break down as the majority of teams around and even well above them have done, Sheffield United looked to press Liverpool. Oliver McBurnie and McGoldrick pushed up onto Kabak and Phillips, while John Fleck moved up out of midfield to get close to Alexander-Arnold. John Lundstram and Norwood would also push up tight to Thiago and Wijnaldum to cut off the passes into midfield.
Liverpool were fairly happy with this though. With the time it took Fleck to get out to Alexander-Arnold, the Scouser typically had time on the ball to pick out a pass, and with the Sheffield United backline pushing up to support the press, he had plenty of space to aim his passes into.
Fail to push up and Liverpool could just find Mané between the lines and work from there.
Liverpool’s attacks therefore fell into one of two categories: they either went direct with a quick ball forward in behind, either looking to play over Sheffield United’s press or catching them on the counter, or they played more patiently, using their five attacking players and Alexander-Arnold joining them to break down Sheffield United’s defence with tight passing exchanges.
Curtis Jones’ opening goal mixed these two together. Alexander-Arnold first tried to find runners with a long ball forward, only for Phil Jagielka to head away, but Liverpool recovered the second ball in Sheffield United’s half. As the home side got men back to defend, Liverpool became more patient. They first went to the left and, when that failed, switched out to the right, where Alexander-Arnold crossed from the byline. Jagielka cut out the cross, but it trickled into the box for Jones to finish, with Fleck and Norwood too busy appealing that the ball had gone out of play to get near him.
Liverpool then doubled their lead through Roberto Firmino. The Brazilian exchanged passes with Jones then Mané as he dribbled his way through the tight gaps between Sheffield United’s defenders, with his shot deflecting off of Kean Bryan into the net.
Sheffield United never really offered anything going forward – their best chance coming just five minutes into the match from a set piece – so it was an easy win for Liverpool.
If you enjoy these posts, please consider subscribing to our Patreon or making a one-off donation. For just $2.99, you can get access to premium videos and training sessions.
No responses yet