A solution to Liverpool’s ongoing defensive midfield dilemma appears to have been found by Jurgen Klopp. Have none, to put it simply. Even the Argentine would readily admit that playing the number six position isn’t his preferred one, despite Alexis Mac Allister starting every Premier League game this season save one.
So, the summer signing will have to pick up skills on the job. It also highlighted why it is potentially restricting him, even though this was his most impressive performance since coming to Anfield. Certainly, one of the factors contributing to the excitement surrounding Mac Allister’s preseason performances was his vision and the force of the pass that enabled Darwin Nunez to score Liverpool’s crucial second goal.
Such contributions would occur more frequently if the team played further upfield. However, Wataru Endo, who played only a few minutes here, and Stefan Bajcetic, a teenager, aren’t quite ready for regular starts for Jurgen Klopp right now. There are other solutions, such as Dominik Szoboszlai and Curtis Jones’ excellent second-half double-six against Wolves last weekend, but that again hinders the pair’s natural game. So, Mac Allister must go on for the foreseeable future.
On the other hand, Anfield has now gotten a preview of what to look forward to in the future. Gomez and Matip pick up the phone. It seems strange to make such a statement about a defensive pairing that combined for 369 Liverpool appearances prior to this match. However, it was intriguing that Joe Gomez and Joel Matip lined up on the right side of the Reds’ defense against a West Ham team that is both physical and quick to break.
Ibrahima Konate was obviously still not fully recovered from his recent muscle injury, so Matip was called back into the lineup. Trent Alexander-Arnold was out with an injury, so Gomez once more filled in. Jurgen Klopp was right to praise both after the game. Matip, who had previously scored the game-winning goal against West Ham in April, showed no signs of discomfort around Michail Antonio, while Gomez accepted the inverted right-back position and made encouraging forward progress while gaining confidence for his defensive work.
It could be said that the two were competing for the man of the match honor. While Jarrod Bowen’s courageous equalizer may have caught him off guard on his comeback to Premier League action, Virgil van Dijk nonetheless contributed to stopping West Ham’s threat from set pieces before reappearing at the other end to help Diogo Jota score the game-winning third.
Salah aids in communicating for Man City. Mohamed Salah will one day score a goal that does not involve him making history or adding his name to a list of the all-time greats. The Egyptian scored from the penalty spot to ensure a 12th straight Premier League game in which he either scored or assisted, matching Stan Collymore (1995), Jamie Vardy (2105), and himself in 2021, now three short of his own record set that year. Liverpool won’t mind if the Egyptian keeps up his impressive form.
Salah has also joined David Beckham, Thierry Henry, Sergio Aguero, and Erling Haaland as the only players to have made such an impact in their team’s first six Premier League games of the season. Additionally, Liverpool has now scored three goals or more in each of their first three home games for just the second time in 43 years, with the other occurrence occurring during the 2019–20 season when they won the title.
With six straight victories, Manchester City won’t be quaking in their boots just yet. Pep Guardiola may be realizing, however, that Anfield may once again be their main rival.
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