Liverpool away at Chelsea: introductions and impressive performances

Liverpool FC have become known for their extreme pressing and flying front three under the management of boss Jürgen Klopp.

The ‘red arrows’ who cause many-a-team issues over the course of a season have naturally been written about endlessly. The trio, consisting of Sadio Mané, Mohammed Salah and Roberto Firmino have an impressive tally of goals and assists between them.

Having seen Salah take the headlines in last week’s opening day 4-3 win over Newly promoted Leeds, in this weekend’s 0-2 away win over Chelsea, it was Sadio Mané’s chance to shine. Mané, who scored both goals, capitalised on a mistake by Kepa Arrizabalaga in the Chelsea goal to secure Liverpool’s second after a stunning header 4 minutes previously put the League Champions 0-1 up.

However, it wasn’t only Mané who shone for the Liverpool team at Stamford Bridge. Playing out of position alongside Virgil Van Dijk, Fabinho looked a real natural at centre back, not allowing new Chelsea acquisition Timo Werner any space to run or score himself.

Fabinho:

Fabinho looked solid and incredibly reliable in his new position by completing the most passes for Liverpool [86] whilst also contributing to a clean sheet for the team. His clearances looked impressive, whilst his focus never wavered. During the game, the Man of the Match made the most recoveries [12] as well as the most interceptions [4] which only goes to highlight how comfortable he was in the game. Could this be a position we see Fabinho in more often adding further competition for Joe Gomez and Joel Matip?

James Milner:

James Milner was another player who impressed in Liverpool’s win over Chelsea. Whilst no stranger to the bench, James is also a chameleon. Someone who will turn his hand to any position and someone who will unreservedly give his all whenever he gets the chance to step on to the pitch, no matter what is asked of him.

Having seen Captain Jordan Henderson come off at half time for new teammate Thiago Alcantara, Milner came on for Naby Keita in the 64th minute and ensured calm and control in the middle of the park. Although playing a team down to ten men, Milner’s work ethic was, as always, phenomenal. He kept the team astute and concentrated whilst popping up in numerous areas across the pitch. In some instances he brilliantly overlapped with Andy Robertson whilst on other occasions he swept the back line in an impressive central defensive midfielder role. One thing that can be guaranteed is that James Milner will always commit to what’s been asked of him, but today that characteristic was more prominent than ever before.

Thiago Alcantara:

Now, the third player that impressed needs no introduction. Thiago Alcantara. Former Barcelona midfielder and now Liverpool FC player. During his Premier League introduction, Thiago completed more passes than any of his fellow Liverpool midfielders (90.4%) breaking the record for most successful passes in a 45 minute spell in the EPL.

Can these three continue to shine and cause problems across the Premier League this season? We can only hope for a further development of this team with new players flourishing and old ones continuing to go from strength to strength.