Liverpool beat Chelsea 5-4 on penalties to win the UEFA Super Cup on Wednesday night, following a 2-2 draw in Istanbul.
Liverpool 2-2 Chelsea (Liverpool win 5-4 on penalties)
UEFA Super Cup, Besiktas Stadium
August 14, 2019
Goals: Mane 48 & 95′; Giroud 36′ & Jorginho pen 101′
Adrian (out of 10) – 8
Adrian was handed his first start for Liverpool and he experienced mixed fortunes.
One brilliant piece of alertness saw him deny Christian Pulisic in the first half, in a moment the injured Alisson would have been proud of.
He gave away the penalty that Jorginho made it 2-2 from in extra-time – it looked desperately harsh – but produced a fine save to keep out Mason Mount soon after.
He ended the night as the hero, saving Tammy Abraham’s spot-kick to seal glory for Liverpool.
Joe Gomez – 5
Gomez was preferred to Trent Alexander-Arnold at right-back but his limitations in the role were exposed throughout.
The versatile defender offered almost no attacking threat and Pulisic’s disallowed goal saved his blushes after one of a number of shaky defensive moments.
Still clearly working his way back to full match sharpness – made one important block to thwart the lively Pulisic.
He moved over to left-back after Robertson went off, which shows how slim the Liverpool squad is.
Joel Matip – 6
Matip partnered Virgil van Dijk after missing out against Norwich, making his 100th appearance for the Reds.
There was a mix of good and bad from the Cameroonian in Istanbul, but the former outweighed the latter.
His long legs came in handy with a number of well-timed tackles, but he looked frightened by Chelsea‘s pace and lost the ball carelessly.
Virgil van Dijk – 6
Attempting to marshal the troops as always, the Dutchman was short of his immaculate best.
Giroud’s aerial presence seemed to trouble him at times and one rare piece of hesitant decision-making almost saw Chelsea strike.
Headed over when he could have done better and was somehow denied by Kepa Arrizabalaga, before making a massive late block on Pedro.
Andy Robertson – 7
Liverpool’s seemingly Mr Ever-Present was one of his side’s better players, but didn’t hit his usual high level.
One magnificent piece of first-half defending saw him track Pedro all the way and nick the ball off him, and he was one of the few individuals who did little wrong.
Even when he’s average, he’s good compared to most left-backs.
Fabinho – 6
Fabinho adopted his now regular No.6 role but he looked off the pace in a midfield that was dominated before the break.
The Brazilian’s passing was rusty, he looked leggy when it came to covering ground and N’Golo Kane outshone him.
He hasn’t quite been on the money yet this season, but he did improve as the game wore on, also scoring in the shootout despite having cramp.
Jordan Henderson – 6
The skipper continued his run as a more attack-minded midfielder, looking to lift a second trophy in less than three months.
Often drifting to the right-hand side to make up for the lack of Alexander-Arnold, all that did was open up Liverpool’s midfield.
One dangerous cross almost found Sadio Mane, and he did look a goalscoring threat, but this was a forgettable performance from Henderson.
Another good trophy lift, though!
James Milner – 5
Milner came into the side in place of Gini Wijnaldum and he looked every bit a midfielder approaching 34 years of age.
The match completely passed him by in the first half, with almost nothing to write home about, playing a huge part in Chelsea bossing the midfield tussle.
Mohamed Salah – 7
Salah has started the season looking hungry and he was consistently Liverpool’s greatest threat early on.
The Egyptian King was denied expertly by Kepa after a trademark burst into the penalty area, while one impressive piece of tracking back highlighted his team ethic.
Seemed to tire late in the second half and in extra-time, which was no great surprise given he only returned to training a fortnight ago!
Seeing Oxlade-Chamberlain in a Liverpool starting lineup for the first time in 477 days was a heartwarming sight.
Jurgen Klopp used him on the left of a front-three, but on the eve of his 26th birthday, he never got into the game and was understandably rusty.
One lovely pass set up Salah for his aforementioned chance, but that was about it, and he was replaced by Roberto Firmino at half-time.
He was 26 by the time the game finished!
Sadio Mane – 8 (Man of the Match)
In the absence of Roberto Firmino, it was Mane who led the line centrally in the first half, in a role he was occasionally used in last season.
One acrobatic attempt could arguably have led to a penalty via handball, but the Senegalese’s impact only grew once he switched to the left.
He was superb once back in his favoured role and equalised for Liverpool with a tap-in early in the second half, before firing home a stunning second.
What a footballer.
Substitutes
Roberto Firmino (on for Oxlade-Chamberlain, 46′) – 8
The Brazilian was majestic at times when he came on, instantly assisting for Mane’s equaliser and doing the same for his second of the night.
He is simply irreplaceable and Liverpool are a different team without him.
Scored his side’s opening penalty.
Gini Wijnaldum (on for Milner, 64′) – 6
The midfielder was more solid than spectacular, in true Wijnaldum fashion.
Trent Alexander-Arnold (on for Robertson, 91′) – 6
Scored his penalty… just.
Divock Origi (on for Mane, 103′) – 6
Scored his penalty… just.
Subs not used: Lonergan, Kelleher, Hoever, Lallana, Shaqiri, Elliott, Brewster.
Jurgen Klopp – 8
In what was the 800th match of his superb managerial career, Klopp ended the night with another trophy to celebrate.
The first half display was lacking, but he picked up his side in the second half, much like in the Community Shield earlier this month.
The German won’t be happy about his side playing 120 minutes less than three days before a trip to Southampton – he has a big job on his hands getting his team prepared for that game.
Who said he was a bottler in ‘finals’?
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