A day after the ransacking of Liverpool FC in the Europa league final, it’s time for the post-mortem. How did a team all over Sevilla at the end of the first half end up going down 3-1 losers? I’ve narrowed it down to three key areas of the match; our focus, our shape, and Alberto Moreno.


Focus

In the same time Liverpool kept a clean sheet in the second half, you wouldn’t get through a third loop of a Vine. 17 seconds was all it took for Kevin Gameiro to stab home a Mariano Ferreira cross to level the scoreline. The Reds never got back into the game.

What happened in that half-time team talk? One has to imagine that Jurgen Klopp spent the time encouraging his team to keep their heads as they led by a goal to nil, and not to switch off. So what went so wrong?

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It’s highly likely that the dressing room thought the game was won. Thinking about who might be scoring in the second half. What pose they were going to pull with the trophy. The post-match tweet. In a dressing room that relied on the gallant leadership of Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher for so long, it seems that Jordan Henderson and James Milner aren’t able to lead from the front in the way their predecessors did. I don’t want this to serve as a damning indictment of the duo though. I value the two of them greatly in the Liverpool team, but I question the track record of the two in finals. Milner and Henderson haven’t had the 2005 Champions League Final, the 2006 FA Cup Final, or even the 2001 UEFA Cup final.

As a manager, Klopp is infamously poor in finals. Having now lost his last five, the German will be eager to win the next. And just imagine the scenes when he finally breaks his duck. I really can’t wait.


Shape

Emre had a really poor night. Was his mind elsewhere? Did the bright lights stun him? His sudden downturn in form meant that for large spells of the game Liverpool felt like they were missing a man in the centre of park. Too often the Sevilla central midfielders had time on the ball, and were first to every loose ball coming out of a challenge.

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It didn’t stop there though. Philippe Coutinho didn’t pick a great time to have one of his worst games of the season. The Brazilian’s normal arsenal of dummies, flicks, and body feints felt ineffective against bullish Spanish opposition, and the number 10 went missing for extended periods of the night. I wonder if Coutinho finds it hard to play alongside his fellow countryman Roberto Firmino. Playing a similar position, I contend that Coutinho finds it easier when he is alone in the middle of the pitch, and has the two wingers to feed in, and feed off too. Having Firmino and Coutinho is fine, I like the idea of using one to spell the other, or even play Firmino ahead of Coutinho. But I question the decision having them playing next to each other.


Alberto Moreno

It’s time to talk about Alberto Moreno. I have defended the Spaniard at various points this season, liking his up-side when going forward. But his defensive indecisiveness and general poor decision-making has really exposed the speedster.

Although Moreno handled his primary assignment very well, the fullback Mariano Ferreira had him on toast with marmalade. Never looking composed, Moreno spent the night trying to catch up with Ferreira and amend for losing the first step on the Sevilla right back.

David Ramos/Getty Images SportOn the first goal, a terrible decision from Moreno left the back door wide open, and although the left back had the chance to make up for his mistake, he actually ran straight past the ball. Making audacious decisions is fine- failing to make up for them is not. The great defenders like Zanetti, Maldini, Cafu, were all known for taking courses of action that could have landed them in hot water. But the subsequent recovery was always so composed and calm that we barely ever noticed the original mistake.

You have to imagine Moreno’s time at Liverpool is nearing an end.


In no way was Alberto Moreno solely responsible for failure in Basel. Our shape and focus killed Liverpool too. But nevertheless, Jurgen Klopp is still the manger of Liverpool Football Club. So who is the real winner?

Why did Liverpool lose on Wednesday night?

Focus

Shape

Alberto Moreno

Other