The Good, Bad and Ugly: Liverpool picked up a big three points against West Ham thanks to goals from Cody Gakpo and Joël Matip, helping edge closer to the top four.
THE LONDON STADIUM, EAST LONDON // With six fixtures left to play, Liverpool is just about still in contention to squeeze into the top-four places in the Premier League and secure Champions League football.
The Europa League might be more likely and the Conference League is not out of the picture just yet, but Liverpool won for the second successive away game thanks to goals from Cody Gakpo and Joël Matip.
Given that Brighton lost at the same time and Newcastle United still has tough matches to play, there is still much to play for ahead of the Reds hosting Spurs at Anfield on Sunday.
Here are the three moments Liverpool.com picked out from the Reds’ victory over West Ham United that moves them — temporarily at least — to within six points of Manchester United in fourth spot.
The Good
Gakpo and Trent Alexander-Arnold were the two stand-out performers for Liverpool, and both have benefited from the new system being in place. The same can be said of Curtis Jones, who is excelling in his more advanced position in midfield.
As with a number of Liverpool players, the new formation in possession simply suits their strengths far more naturally than the old one — and that should be the basis of any tactical change.
The sample size is slowly growing and it certainly looks as if Liverpool should stick with this new way of playing. In Alexander-Arnold and Jones, Liverpool has two major new creative outlets to rely on.
Alexander-Arnold added another assist to his name with Gakpo’s goal and his playmaking abilities have never been in doubt. Jones, meanwhile, has been unleashed in a more advanced position — a role that comes much more naturally.
Play your best and most exciting talents in their most effective areas and you will see the benefits. Liverpool and Jürgen Klopp have finally found a way of making that possible.
The Bad
Darwin Núñez struggled to get into the game off the bench and it feels unlikely that he will start at the weekend as a result. Diogo Jota was not at his best and the Portugal forward missed a couple of chances to score, but Núñez was no better.
Luis Díaz looked bright but whether he is ready to begin a match against Spurs remains to be seen. Mohamed Salah, of course, will play on the right, though he was stifled quite well with lots of bodies around him.
The problem for Núñez is that Gakpo played so well and linked things up expertly. Like Jota, Núñez needs a regular run of starts to build momentum, but whether that comes remains to be seen. His and Gakpo’s skillsets are very different.
There is hope, though, for the Uruguayan. Only a few weeks ago it seemed impossible that Jones would get a run. Now, it would be a major surprise if he was not in the starting XI on Sunday.
The Ugly
West Ham boss David Moyes led the protests and his players followed, but the two claims inside the penalty area that left him furious were simply the correct calls by the referee, Chris Cavanagh.
Perhaps the most difficult thing as an official is when you make the right decision but are still harassed and moaned at by players and coaches seemingly unaware of the rules of the sport they are playing.
West Ham was incensed by Matip getting a free-kick for being hacked down by Jarrod Bowen, while they were even more annoyed by the ball touching Thiago Alcântara’s hand.
Cavanagh was right not to award a spot-kick as Thiago’s arm was in a natural position to break his fall, and the ball had also deflected onto his arm after ricocheting from his well-timed tackle.
Moyes and his players were left furious, but the referee got the decisions right. It is only right to point that out when there is so much scrutiny over actual errors, rather than perceived ones.
