Liverpool’s mixed performance in the 1-1 draw at Chelsea was assessed in depth by the watching media, with much to work on for Jurgen Klopp.
The Reds battled their way to an adequate point at Stamford Bridge on Sunday afternoon, taking the lead through Luis Diaz‘s well-taken effort.
Chelsea responded through debutant Axel Disasi and the two sides ended up leaving with a share of the spoils, despite both having a goal ruled out by VAR.
Here’s how the media reacted to Liverpool’s point in west London.
Liverpool’s performance was good at times, but also worryingly open…
Richard Jolly of the Independent felt it was a game that showed why the Reds and Chelsea both want Brighton midfielder Moises Caicedo:
“If only there were two Moises Caicedos. Chelsea and Liverpool have a shared willingness to pay in excess of £100m and if the battle for his services will be conducted off the field, his suitors showed why each wants him by providing a glimpse of the holes in their midfields.
“Yet, with the expensive Ecuadorian lingering in limbo, the absence of a specialist defensive midfielder on either side added to the entertainment.
“In a fixture where Claude Makelele and Javier Mascherano used to prowl, snuffing out danger, in a meeting of teams whose previous four clashes had ended goalless, 1-1 felt a deceptive scoreline.
“Each had a goal disallowed by the most fractional of offsides. It could have been 2-2, perhaps 3-3.”
The Guardian‘s Jacob Steinberg was of a similar thought process, throwing doubt over Liverpool’s title credentials:
“The main takeaway was that both sides need the craft and energy of Moisés Caicedo in midfield. Chelsea and Liverpool played out an entertaining but flawed draw at Stamford Bridge, leaving Mauricio Pochettino and Jürgen Klopp with much to ponder.
“Chelsea are likely to win the race to sign Caicedo from Brighton and they will feel encouraged after taking a point from Pochettino’s first game in charge.
“They were fit, committed and threatened to overwhelm Liverpool at times. Luis Díaz had given Liverpool an early lead but they did not look like title challengers.”
The Liverpool Echo‘s Paul Gorst took to Twitter to say the result is a good one for the Reds, stressing the need for more signings:
“Has to be considered a really good point for Liverpool. Chelsea were the better team for two thirds of it and the players looked vulnerable and sloppy the more the game went on. Still at least two short before end of window.”
“Thought Mac Allister was excellent first half but tired massively – as evidenced by that slack pass to Nunez! – and Gakpo’s midfield experiment should be reserved for low block defences.
“Decision to sub Salah was odd. Squad is howling out for a defensive mid, but we know that.”
Phil McNulty of BBC Sport thought it was a flawed showing by Klopp’s men:
“For all Liverpool’s threat going forward, and substitute Darwin Nunez almost won it with a deflected show in the last few seconds, Liverpool looked vulnerable at the back.
“The visitors will nevertheless be reasonably happy with a point, although they thought they had made it 2-0 when Salah scored in the first half before it was ruled out for offside by VAR.
“However the flaws Klopp is trying to address with at least one more midfield signing remain obvious.
“They were angry they did not receive a penalty for an appeal for handball against Jackson but a point was probably what they deserved.”
The Mail‘s Ian Ladyman feels Liverpool will be lots of fun this season, but is another who has doubts about their trophy-winning ability:
“As Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez caught a Liverpool corner in added time and initiated a counter attack in to the sunshine, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp held his hands above his head like a man who feared a catastrophe may be about to unfold. On this occasion it didn’t happen.
“The Chelsea move did indeed carry them 90 yards in to the Liverpool penalty area only for Alexis Mac Allister to apply a rather desperate but perfectly timed tackle at exactly the right moment.
“But this, in one moment, was the essence of Liverpool here. It’s impossible to take your eyes off them at either end of the field.
“Brilliant for the TV cameras but less palatable when you have designs on winning the Premier League.”
A few others focused on the impact of certain individuals…
This Is Anfield‘s David Lynch felt Mohamed Salah couldn’t complain too much about being substituted:
“It would be fair to say that Mohamed Salah was not best pleased about being subbed off with in the 77th minute at Stamford Bridge.
“But this was clearly a change made with his best interests at heart, even if his angry reaction to the manager’s decision showed he did not agree.
“With a gruelling pre-season only recently completed, Klopp is right to look to manage his players’ fitness and minutes in the early part of the campaign as he looks to avoid a repeat of last season’s injury issues.
“What’s more, Ben Doak‘s freshness and enthusiasm gave Liverpool fresh attacking impetus in the final 20 minutes of the game when they had previously been drifting.”
On Twitter, Joel Rabinowitz bemoaned the use of Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai without a proper defensive midfielder:
“The most frustrating thing about not having a DM is that it massively shackles other players by forcing them to do jobs that aren’t their natural game.
“Won’t get the best version of Mac Allister or Szoboszlai, for instance, until there’s a solid defensive presence behind them.”
Finally, Lynch also took time to praise Harvey Elliott‘s positive cameo from the substitutes’ bench:
“Liverpool supporters have perhaps been guilty of underplaying the important role Harvey Elliott can take on this season despite an ongoing midfield overhaul.
“The Englishman certainly looked to be a player capable of making a big impact across the campaign during a brief cameo in this game.
“His pressing helped put the Reds back on the front foot and his use of the ball always seems to help the Reds create dangerous situations.
“The biggest criticism Elliott has faced during his short career centres on his lack of physicality, but definitely appears to have bulked up over the summer and looked sharper than ever in his sprints here too.”
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