LIVERPOOL played out a tactical “game of chicken” against Chelsea on Sunday.
And Arne Slot‘s side came home to roost with a 2-1 win courtesy of goals from Mohamed Salah and Curtis Jones.
Arne Slot came up with a genius ‘traffic jam’ plan to beat Chelsea[/caption]
It placed huge demand on Curtis Jones to neutralise Cole Palmer’s ability to get on the ball[/caption]
Double bubble Jones was also the difference maker in the attack to help Liverpool edge the match[/caption]
The Dutch tactician came up trumps thanks to a genius way of neutralising Blues star man Cole Palmer in a “traffic jam”, while simultaneously allowing Jones to dominate both ends of the pitch.
The England Under-21 international proved the difference maker with his defensive contribution and vital impact in the final third.
Jones, 23, dedicated his match-winning goal to newborn daughter Giselle Deliah and girlfriend Saffie Khan.
SunSport tactics guru Dean Scoggins explains how Slot was able to squeeze a win out of Enzo Maresca‘s side.
Slot’s traffic jam
Slot and Maresca showed each other a lot of respect in their respective set-ups, but it was the move to shut down Cole Palmer which was a key difference maker.
Chelsea have often looked to find their top scorer in the corridors between the centre-backs and full-backs.
Liverpool set up in 4-2-3-1 shape in possession[/caption]
Out of possession the objective was to restrict the passing lanes[/caption]
In possession Liverpool lined up in 4-2-3-1 formation with Ryan Gravenberch and Jones in a pair.
But when defending this morphed into a 4-3-3 as Jones drifted into the channel where Palmer likes to drift to pick up the ball to stop him receiving it in those lanes.
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This was not a man-marking job, but rather a job of cutting out the passing lanes while he also got help from Cody Gakpo to crowd that area to prevent the likes of Levi Colwill from executing his trademark long passes through the lines.
Jones’ role almost saw him hiding at times as he waited to pounce to press against the ball.
Cody Gakpo and Jones had a particular job of shutting down the passing lanes to Palmer[/caption]
Levi Colwill often had to deal with heavy congestion in trying to pass through the lines[/caption]
Much of Colwill’s passing was limited due to the compact defensive block, therefore limiting the ability to build.
Although Jones’ task of marking the area of Palmer meant he had a greater responsibility.
Double bubble Jones
Jones had a dual-role in midfield at Anfield.
The first saw him picking up the passing lane in front of Palmer, but this in turn left him unmarked by the Blues’ box midfield shape when the ball was turned over.
This meant Jones was then able to be the spare man in midfield for Liverpool, which resulted in decisive consequences for the overall game.
Jones used this free space to make late runs into the penalty area, resulting in him causing many headaches for the Chelsea defence.
His movement resulted in two penalty appeals – one that was given and one that was not given – and in him finding the open space to score the eventual winner early in the second half.
Chelsea’s own gameplan saw Malo Gusto tucking inside from left back and pushing up alongside Palmer while Romeo Lavia and Moises Caicedo completed their box midfield set-up.
This freed up space for Reece James on the right side with Gakpo and Jones doing a specific job to cut out space more centrally.
However, James was far from his best and struggled to utilise this space, with Liverpool able to be patient and wait for the overload before counter-attacking.
String theory
As mentioned earlier, Gakpo and Jones worked in tandem to shut down the threat of Palmer.
Gakpo – an interesting selection choice ahead of Luis Diaz – was often seen sitting in front of Jones to help block the passing lane.
He remained disciplined and kept a steady distance from Jones as a screen in front, with Jones then able to instruct him in how they could best combat the threat.
This extended to when the ball was switched to the other flank, with Gakpo able to pick up Palmer after Jones tucked in to continually make a 2v1 scenario.
Game of chicken
The patience shown by both teams meant a lot of the emphasis on build-up play was left to the goalkeeper, and Chelsea’s Robert Sanchez did not have a great game in this regard.
Rather than jumping out to press, Liverpool simply set up and told Chelsea to try and break them down – a similar move to their set-up at Old Trafford against Manchester United.
The first pass was the trigger, but only if they had the numbers.
This “mid press” meant Sanchez was often forced to go long, and will likely be another indicator that Chelsea will move for an expensive ball-playing goalkeeper next summer.
Slot told Dominik Szoboszlai to hold position after Jones indicated how they were being overrun[/caption]
Dominik Szoboszlai was given specific instructions to press Colwill when he was on the ball to stop him playing by blocking the passing lanes, but to leave Sanchez alone.
This defensive ploy meant Colwill was unable to play line-breaking passes into Palmer or Caicedo, forcing Chelsea out of their comfort zone and doing something Maresca does not want them to do.
At one stage, Jones turned to Slot when they were being overloaded in midfield, with the manager then telling Szoboszlai to stop jumping out and set up in a five-player block.
A far cry from Jurgen Klopp‘s famous gegenpress tactics.
Tension ball
For all of Liverpool’s impressive tactics, Maresca came very close to winning the game of chess with his “tension ball” tactic.
Playing at left-back, Gusto tucked inside with Lavia playing in midfield ahead of Enzo Maresca.
Malo Gusto pushed high from left-back to create a box midfield[/caption]
But rather than inverting into the deeper midfield role seen previously, he was actually seen playing like a left 10 alongside Palmer and Jadon Sancho.
He did not see enough of the ball and was not good enough in that position, but showed superb work rate which meant they could retain their four-man shape in midfield.
And when Nicolas Jackson scored an equaliser just after half-time, it was through the tension created by Gusto occupying space that then freed up his attacking team-mate.
This idea did not quite pay off every time in the first half, but when it worked it likely would have resulted in more dangerous opportunities if not for Jones having a brilliant game in tracking the runs of Palmer.
In the first half he blocked one superb chance from Palmer, though there was one genius moment from the 22-year-old – an echo of greats such as Eric Cantona and Teddy Sheringham – where he bought himself a few yards of space just by stopping.
That turned out to be the only mistake Jones made in an otherwise faultless display.
Liverpool ratings vs Chelsea
By Ken Lawrence
LIVERPOOL picked up a big 2-1 victory over Chelsea at Anfield to remain top of the Premier League.
The Reds registered their first victory against a team currently occupying the top half of the Prem table.
That was a major statement for the Merseysiders’ manager Arne Slot, whose team now stands a point ahead of Manchester City and four away from third-placed Arsenal at the top.
Mohamed Salah opened the scoring a minute before the half-hourmark from the penalty spot.
But Chelsea hit back just three minutes into the second half with Nicolas Jackson.
However, Liverpool picked up the three points thanks to Curtis Jones’ winner just three minutes later.
But how did each Liverpool star far? Check out Ken Lawrence’s player ratings below for more:
CAOIMHIN KELLEHER – 5
For the Kop – and no doubt secretly for boss Arne Slot – still surely lacking a top keeper’s presence.
TRENT ALEXANDER-ARNOLD – 5
Didn’t look entirely comfortable throughout especially in the face of Malo Gusto’s first-half raids.
IBRAHIMA KONATE – 5
Caught napping by Nicolas Jackson’s run three minutes into the second half for Chelsea’s equaliser.
VIRGIL VAN DIJK – 7
He has his assassins back home in the Netherlands but again showed imperious defensive abilities.
ANDY ROBERTSON – 6
The Scotland captain is often praised more for his attacking qualities than his defensive ones, but goodness me – what a brilliant last-second block.
RYAN GRAVENBERCH – 7
Only played 12 games in Jurgen Klopp’s final season but showed again why he’s now an automatic choice for Slot.
CURTIS JONES – 9
Outstanding all over the pitch, won one pen when it should have been two, plus grabbed a poacher’s winner.
DOMINIK SZOBOSZLAI– 5
Again suggested he flatters to deceive, too often playing at a slower tempo than those around him.
MOHAMED SALAH – 7
What’s left to say about Anfield’s Egyptian king and his ultimate cool shot from the spot?
DIOGO JOTA – 4
Forced off after playing in pain after Tosin Adarabioyo hauled him to the deck early on.
CODY GAKPO – 5
Flitted in and out of the action, the Dutch wide man didn’t look that shocked to be replaced.
SUBS
DARWIN NUNEZ (for Jota 30) – 5
Still a work in progress, says Slot – but working much harder off the ball.
LUIS DIAZ (for Gakpo 65) – 5
Ever-willing to shows that feisty left-sided pace of his.
ALEXIS MAC ALLISTER ( for Curtis Jones 81) 5
Ill in midweek but as the Argentine always does, got stuck in.
JOE GOMEZ (for Trent Alexander-Arnold 81) – 5
A few welcome minutes for the defender now down the pecking order.
