The Kopite View

Sadio Mane left Liverpool after scoring in his team’s 2-2 draw at Sunderland, the former Southampton player left to join up with his Senegal team-mates ahead of the Africa Cup of Nations.

Mane has played a big part in Liverpool’s success this season after making his big-money move last summer from Southampton, his pace has given the Reds’ attack a new dimension and many supporters fear that his absence could see Liverpool’s attack struggle.

Mane is probably the only attacking player with lightning pace at Anfield, but manager Jurgen Klopp has other attacking options at his disposal, with Firmino, Origi, Coutinho, Lallana and Sturridge all available.

But I think Mane’s absence is just the chance Daniel Sturridge needs to get a run of games in Klopp’s team.

The England striker has endured a frustrating time this season, with only a few cameo appearances to show for his efforts so far this season.

Sturridge has shown his ability and value to Liverpool’s squad in the last few weeks, for example, he came off the bench at Goodison to play a major role in Mane’s derby winner before scoring in the 4-1 win over Stoke City, Sturridge also found the net in last Monday’s 2-2 draw away to Sunderland and his recent form could see him play a major role in Mane’s absence.

There is no doubting Sturridge’s ability but he has found himself struggling to get into Klopp’s side this season and this could be just be the opportunity he needs to show Klopp that he should be playing more regularly.

Although Sturridge has struggled for games this season, and possibly doesn’t suit Klopp’s style of play, I’ve felt all season that he has a vital role to play this season for Liverpool, and I really think this is his time.

Sunday’s draw at Sunderland was a massive disappointment for Liverpool supporters, especially after beating Manchester City a couple of days earlier, the win put the Reds in a strong position in second place, and only 6 points behind leaders Chelsea.

A victory against Sunderland would have put Liverpool only 3 points behind Chelsea and put pressure on the London club ahead of their clash against Tottenham Hotspur.

Unfortunately Liverpool couldn’t hold onto the lead against Davie Moyes’ team, they squandered the lead twice by conceding two penalties, and left the Reds’ supporters extremely frustrated.

Liverpool supporters are so frustratingly used to seeing their team build their hopes up after earning a good result and putting themselves in a challenging position, only to see them drop points against struggling sides.

Most supporters feared another Chelsea win on Wednesday night but Spurs ended the Premier League leaders’ superb winning run and gave the rest of the chasing pack including Liverpool encouragement by inflicting a 2-0 defeat on the men from Stamford Bridge.

Yes, Liverpool could have been only 3 points behind Chelsea, but they are still second in the league and in a strong position to challenge for the title, and instead of Chelsea extending their lead at the top of the league, the Reds have actually closed the gap to 5 points after the recent set of fixtures.

The Sunderland result was disappointing but it can’t be changed and Liverpool are still in a great position.

Mane is going to be a miss for the next few games but Liverpool’s injury list is clearing up and it is expected that Matip, Henderson and Coutinho should return to action soon, and Milner and Sturridge should be okay after picking up knocks at the weekend.

We have a tremendous manager at the moment and he has improved Liverpool’s team in such a short space of time and I’m expecting an exciting second half of the season.

When Klopp arrived at Anfield he told Liverpool supporters to become “believers”, I think they are far too many non-believers still around Anfield at the moment.

Come on let’s all believe.

I hope all my fellow Liverpool supporters have had a very merry Christmas, because from a football point of view things are very encouraging.

I have to start with the manager Jurgen Klopp, what a man, he is the biggest signing since King Kenny, and I’d probably put him up there with the legendary Bill Shankly because of the way that he’s connected the supporters with the club again.

In recent times there has been an ever growing gap between the fans and the club, highlighted by the previous owners that we couldn’t get rid of quick enough, but Klopp has been like a breath of fresh air running through Anfield, and the way he makes his players run through brick walls for him is just what Kopites love to see.

But Klopp has also built a squad in a very short space of time that can compete in a very tough Premier League.

The German has inspired the Reds to second place in the league this Christmas and the last time we sat in this position at this festive time we went on to win the league.

Despite looking for good omens, Klopp has Liverpool supporters believing again, and during his relatively short tenure, he has got us excited and enjoying watching our team again.

Klopp has showed us that he is not going to be messed with regarding his stand against Sakho despite the French international’s ability, nobody will break Klopp’s rules and get away with it..

Dropping Karius for Mignolet was another big decision to make, especially after Klopp signed the German keeper in the summer as a potential upgrade on Mignolet, but he’s reinstated the Belgian back between the sticks after Karius struggled for form and confidence in recent games and Liverpool have looked more solid in defence as a result.

Lovren has been transformed since Klopp’s arrival and signing Matip on a free is one of the signings of the year.

To move Milner to left-back is another decision that should be applauded because the left-sided defensive position looked a problem position for Liverpool, but Milner looks like he’s played there for years.

Another player that has thrived under Klopp’s influence is Bobby Firmino, the Brazilian has been superb playing in the central striking role and his understanding with Coutinho is causing havoc for opposing defences.

Adam Lallana has become possibly Liverpool’s most important player with his energy and trickery, combined with him now producing a final product to his end product.

Liverpool are looking really good for the second half of the season and that is why it is a very merry Christmas to enjoy this year for Liverpool supporters with the future looking really bright, enjoy the festive season fellow Reds.

1.       Klopp made the right decision to drop Karius for Mignolet, taking the young German out of the spotlight for a while could help him regain his confidence, and Mignolet looked like a keeper with a point to prove last night, by producing an impressive performance last night.

2.       Origi has stepped up to the plate with 5 goals in his last 5 games since replacing the injured Coutinho, and last night he produced possibly his best performance in a red shirt so far.

3.       Liverpool bounced back from a couple of bad results in emphatic fashion to prove that they are still title contenders.

4.       Injuries are taking their toll on Liverpool’s squad with youngster like Woodburn, Ejaria and Trent Alexander-Arnold being named as substitutes for the trip to Middlesbrough.

5.       Firmino is missing Coutinho and playing through the middle, the Brazilian has been moved out to the left to accommodate Origi and has struggled to replicate the form he showed playing through the centre.

6.       Klavan is a better central defensive option than Lucas, the big defender strolled through the game alongside Lovren as Liverpool kept a rare clean sheet.

7.       Mane will be a big miss next month, the former Southampton star’s pace gives Liverpool’s attack a different dimension and he caused Middlesbrough’s defence trouble all night.

8.       Adam Lallana is back to his best after recovering from injury, and topped of a superb display with two goals, the England international has added goals to his game this season and is now one of Liverpool’s most important players.

9.       Liverpool have a much needed confidence boosting win to set them up nicely for Monday night’s Merseyside derby.

Defeat Could Be Good For Liverpool

Sunday’s collapse at Bournemouth left everyone connected with Liverpool disappointed, but now that the dust has settled and the healing process underway, the defeat might just be a good thing for the Reds.

I don’t think Klopp has been getting carried away with his team’s good form, but maybe some of his players have been, and many supporters have been dreaming again of winning the title, and this defeat has brought everyone down to earth with a bump.

There was a sense of complacency on Sunday that the result was a formality after Liverpool stormed into a 2-0 lead at half-time before keeping their two goal lead with a 3-1 score well into the second half, before disaster struck.

It was a stark reminder that the game is never over until the final whistle and the defeat will give Liverpool a reality check that they need to work until the very end to earn a win in this league.

If Liverpool go on another long undefeated run like they did after their last league defeat away to Burnley at the start of the season, then supporters will be quite happy, time will tell if they can, but although they lost the game, they still played very well and dominated the game for long periods.

The next fixture for Liverpool is a home game against West Ham and with respect to the Hammers, it is probably a good fixture to bounce back from and get back on track again.

Although Sunday’s defeat is still raw and still hurts, it could be the kick up the backside we need.

                                        Liverpool’s Bad Day At The Office

Liverpool looked to be cruising to another Premier League victory against Bournemouth after taking a 2-0 lead at half-time, then a 3-1 lead well into the second half, but disaster struck in the last 15 minutes as the Reds capitulated and lost the game 4-3.

A win would have put Liverpool only a point behind Premier League leaders Chelsea, but the loss left them sitting in third place and shocked at losing from such a strong winning position.

Liverpool played well for the most part and dominated for large periods and should’ve put the game to bed, but I felt it was one of those games where substitutes changed the game and Bournemouth’s Ryan Fraser turned the game when he was introduced in the 55^th minute.

Seconds after coming on Fraser won his side a penalty after being brought down by Milner before scoring the hosts’ second goal that set them on the way to a remarkable comeback.

Matip was a massive miss in Liverpool’s defence and it was strange to see Lucas deputise once again instead of Klavan who is a natural centre-back.

Lovren was slated for his performance but it is difficult playing with a different defensive partner and he looked like he was trying to cover too much instead of doing his own job at times.

Mane’s pace for an outlet was missed when he came off.

Karius had an absolute shocker and was to blame for the second and fourth goals and looked shaky all day despite a terrific save at 3-3.

Klopp has a decision to make whether to keep Karius in goal or play Mignolet, personally, I think he’ll stick with Karius, and I think he should for now, but he needs to start showing why he is an upgrade on Mignolet soon, because I’ve not seen anything to suggest it so far.

I think Liverpool will bounce back from Sunday’s defeat and put it behind them because Klopp isn’t the type of man to dwell on disappointments.

                                     Liverpool Are Now Finding Different Ways To Get Results

Liverpool’s 2-0 win over Sunderland at the weekend was another important three points for Klopp’s men as they continue their impressive start to the season, but it wasn’t as easy as many Reds’ supporters had anticipated, with Davie Moyes setting his team out to defend and make it as difficult as possible for Liverpool.

In recent seasons Liverpool would’ve ended up finishing the game 0-0, but this team under Klopp is finding different ways to get positive results, and Saturday was another example.

Liverpool were not at their brilliant best on Saturday and struggled to get behind Sunderland’s deep-lying defence, and seeing Coutinho stretchered off in the first half didn’t help matters, but the Reds stayed patient and continued to press until they finally penetrated Sunderland’s stubborn defence when Origi fired in a superb opener before Milner’s penalty sealed the victory after Mane was fouled in the box in stoppage time.

It looked like Liverpool were going to draw 0-0 for the second game in a row against another team that wanted to ‘park the bus’ to frustrate the Reds, but patience was the key on Saturday and they got their reward in the end with the three points.

The previous week at Southampton, Liverpool should have won after creating enough chances in a dominant display, but although they only picked up a point, in recent years they would’ve lost a game like that away from home, and the clean sheet proved important.

Liverpool are finding different ways to pick up points this season and that is proving to be an important factor in why they are in such a good league position.