Thursday 23 October 2014

Match Review - Real Madrid

This is what we had waited for, this was our reward for our stunning season last year, The Champions League at home to the current European Champions Real Madrid.

We knew before the game it was going to be difficult Madrid are one of the best teams in world football with an array of stars that anybody would be jealous of.  But this is what Liverpool do, this is what we are all about, a big fixture against a top team under the lights at Anfield.  We feared the worst our defence against Madrid could only end one way but we were told don't worry, Liverpool will raise their game, Madrid are poor at the back, their keeper is out of former making terrible mistakes and remember it's what we do.

For twenty minutes or so I thought, game on here, we were rushing them into mistakes we were matching them, Yeh this is what we do, this is Liverpool in Europe and for the first time this year the crowd were on top form as well,  it had all the makings of a big Liverpool European night.  Then Madrid showed us what they do, we dropped of the pace slightly, just slightly, slower in the press and all of a sudden we were on the back foot and the absolute quality in the Madrid team started to shine through a stunning chip through our defence and Ronaldo in a flash had stroked a lovely goal into the corner a brilliant goal, that's what Madrid do.  Then we panicked, they were extremely good, but the normal terrible, embarrassing defensive errors were there for all to see and within fifteen minutes we were 3-0 down, that's what good, world class players do.  Liverpool simply can't continue to defend like this everybody can see how to beat us anything direct and high into our penalty box and we are in trouble and against Real Madrid big trouble.

The second half and and with Lallana on for the again ineffective Balotelli and Liverpool looked a little brighter but again we couldn't find a way passed the Madrid defence who looked fine me, maybe I am now just used to watching Liverpool but they looked class never panicked always in control certainly not the vulnerable defence we were promised anything that did get through was adequately tidied up by the keeper who looked assured not the panicking out of form keeper we were promised.

Although for most of the second half it appeared that we were if not holding our own then doing better, I got the impression that Madrid had taken their foot of the gas, I was left with the impression that if they chose to do so they had several gears to go through and we're confident that if they needed they could score almost at will.  They were definitely taking things easy for their big game at the weekend against Barcelona and that for me sums things up Real Madrid were very confident that we would be brushed aside, they were hardly concerned about us, we were nothing more than an inconvenience before the big game at the weekend.

Unfortunately that is our standing in the game at the moment, we are struggling in our own league and we seem to have no answers, short-term I'm sure that the management will sort out some of our many issues and we will improve hopefully in time to challenge for qualification for this tournament next year.  But if we get a little to good, a little to close, the likes of Barcelona and Madrid will take our players, who will leave at the drop of a hat because generally we aren't competitive at this level at the moment.  We can't complain, that's what we have done to clubs in the league for years, look at Southampton in the summer.  What we need to do is get things correct in the transfer market it can be done, again look at Southampton or at the higher levels Dortmond or Athletico Madrid Madrid have lost Torres, Aguero, Falcao, Costa all in recent times and still don't seem to struggle we lose Suarez and it's like the end of the world.

I seem to be saying it after every game but lots of work to do after all we struggled against QPR why did we expect any different against Madrid

@lfclumo  

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