Liverpool got their Champions League campaign off to a winning start thanks to Roberto Firmino’s late strike.
Liverpool bossed the game but threw away a two-goal lead. With the game heading for a 2-2 draw, Liverpool’s Brazilian star, bad eye and all, produced a moment of sheer quality to earn Liverpool three points.
To discuss the fallout from the game in a bit more depth further, I spoke to Sam McGuire and Grizz Khan.
Here’s what they had to say:
Firstly, sum up your emotions after such a dramatic win over a top European side?
Sam: I think I had a bit of a Mo Salah moment after Roberto Firmino’s shot found its way into the bottom corner. It’s always amazing to win a game in stoppage time no matter who you’re up against and I was lost in the moment. That joy soon turned to relief, with a bit of frustration thrown in there for good measure, though, after realising just how close we’d come to only taking one point away from a game we’d dominated.
Grizz: It’s mad, simply mad, that I didn’t find it too dramatic. I honestly expected us to go up the other end and get a late winner and that’s an amazing feeling
What did you make of Jurgen Klopp’s decision to start Daniel Sturridge in place of the unfit Roberto Firmino?
Sam: Firmino missed training the day before so it kind of forced Klopp’s hand. Having said that, It was the ideal game for that change to happen in many ways. In Europe, PSG are a counter-attacking team and pressing high against them would’ve resulted in them having opportunities to hit us on the break. The fact we weren’t pressing them in our final third leant itself to Sturridge’s involvement. After all, it’s not his biggest strength. Yes, Firmino’s work rate would’ve been a nice addition but it wasn’t a necessity. If we’re competing on all fronts then we’re going to need to use our squad so there’s no issue from me with seeing Firmino sat on the bench from time to time.
Grizz: I thought it was a brave call from Jurgen to start Sturridge. It seems, by all accounts, that Bobby could have started but Klopp felt it would have been harsh on Studge. I thought that Xherdan Shaqiri would have come in with Mo Salah going through the middle but Sturridge justified the selection. This is the fittest that I’ve seen him in two or three years.
Which Liverpool player stood out for you in terms of his performance?
Sam: Has to be Jimmy Milner. I think he’s been man-of-the-match in every single game this season. I’m not sure what we did to him last season, whether we simply gave him a service and changed his oil or rebooted his software, but he’s been a machine since December and I’m all for it. Extra points for smashing Neymar and then rubbing his arse on his head.
Grizz: To pick one player out of that pack of heroes is hard. The two full-backs and two centre-backs were awesome but the three in midfield were like men possessed and if push came to shove and I had to choose just one, I’d say Gini Wijnaldum. Along with Joe Gomez, he is the find of the season thus far.
How worried are you about Mo Salah’s seemingly poor run of form?
Sam: I don’t think there’s an issue there, yet. His performances, in general, aren’t too dissimilar to those he was putting in last season, just this time around he isn’t scoring as freely. However, he’s getting into good areas on a regular basis and his underlying stats paint a picture of a player primed to score goals.
Grizz: I’m not worried about Mo Salah, full stop! He’s a great player who played the most minutes he’d ever played last season which resulted in a nasty shoulder injury, plus he was maybe slightly rushed back for Egypt. He will be back to his best sooner rather than later.
Plenty of fans were a bit shocked at how poor PSG looked at times, did you feel the same?
Sam: I expected it. I penned a piece for Football Whispers in the build-up to the match examining their form and tactics under Tuchel this term and it’s clear they’re still in transition. Unlike Klopp when he replaced Rodgers, the PSG boss doesn’t have players with a work rate to mask these tactical issues, either. Their attacking quality means they bully Ligue 1 opposition and it papers over their defensive cracks. The same can’t be done in the Champions League.
Grizz: I don’t like this argument that both Tottenham and PSG were poor. We made them look poor and ordinary. It’s time that media and the like start recognising that we are the real deal this year.
The Reds now have six wins from six games, how are you feeling about the team going into a tough run of fixtures?
Sam: Excited. I can’t remember what it feels like to drop points. Our form seems sustainable and that’s after playing Spurs and PSG. We’re not conceding big chances and we’re creating high-quality opportunities at an alarming rate. We aren’t at our most prolific right now, with the front three nowhere near their electric best, but we’re still averaging two goals per game. When it clicks, which it will, we’ll be blowing teams away like last season.
Grizz: There are exciting times ahead. Bring on the fixtures that everyone is talking about! This is what it’s all about; big games for big clubs. Let’s not forget the likes of Naby Keita, Fabhino, Joel Matip, Nathaniel Clyne, Adam Lallana and Shaqiri have yet to really take part. Our strength in depth is underrated.
