Liverpool take on Atletico Madrid in the Champions League in midweek and they go into this game at the back of a 2-2 draw against Brighton.
The Anfield outfit looked to be in cruise control on Saturday, going 2-0 in within the first 24 minutes but then the Seagulls fought back and managed to pick up a point from that game.
The two dropped points also mean Liverpool have lost ground to the PL league leaders and their confidence is also dented going into such a key European game vs Atleti.
While we don’t think Liverpool are the underdogs on Wednesday but Brighton have revealed a major chink in Liverpool’s armour, something which could be exploited by Diego Simeone.
Liverpool vs Atletico Madrid: Always on the front foot
Liverpool are deadly when they are on the front foot and are playing attacking football. But whenever they drop deep, things have not gone too well for them.
And this was perfectly exploited by Brighton and Hove Albion on Saturday.
After Liverpool went 2-0 up they loosened up a bit and chose to sit and back take things easy. This plan clearly did not work out well for them and someone like Atletico Madrid can exploit it even more on Wednesday.
Even pundit Peter Crouch has come out to claim that Premier League sides just cannot afford to play with a low block.
Crouch wrote in his Daily Mail column: “If the top teams are right at it, they beat you by four or five. But if they slip by even the smallest of percentages, these teams happily take advantage.
Luis Suarez on Atletico vs Liverpool:
“We started very well, but they are strong and intelligent and very experienced, and they were ahead in the first 20 to 25 minutes, until we got back in the game.” #awlive [liverpool echo] pic.twitter.com/AhNW7etMaF
— Anfield Watch (@AnfieldWatch) November 1, 2021
“You cannot drop off or play within yourself. These results are definitely rarer in other leagues around the world, and who would want to change that?”
Liverpool have scored 29 goals in 10 league matches this season but at the same time, they have conceded eight goals which is the highest amongst the top-three sides. Even with Van Dijk in defence, the Reds have failed to keep a clean sheet in the UCL this season.
The Anfield outfit are sitting at the top of their group with nine points so there’s every chance they will not be taking too many risks on Wednesday. On the other hand, Atletico only have four points so we expect them to throw the kitchen sink.
If Liverpool do not want drop points in two games in a row then Jurgen Klopp will have to ensure that his side play their natural attacking game instead of trying something fancy and sitting back to hold on.
