Liverpool provided the perfect performance following their disappointment on Sunday to record a league double over Manchester City with an aggregate score of 7-1
Jurgen Klopp was authoritative in stating “only silly idiots stay on the floor” following Liverpool’s League Cup final shoot-out defeat to Manchester City.
His charges were just as imposing in showing they had no intention of remaining on the canvas as they KO’d Manuel Pellegrini’s men three days after their Wembley disappointment. The response from the Reds was swift and severe: they asserted themselves from the first whistle at Anfield, and by the final one, were 3-0 up.
Adam Lallana, James Milner and Roberto Firmino were the scorers as Liverpool delivered an emphatic dent to City’s title aspirations. Ahead of the encounter and after lifting the League Cup on Sunday, Vincent Kompany warned it was “hunting season” for his side. They would be out for blood, he declared.
But it Liverpool with all the armoury at Anfield, and it was the visitors who were easily trapped and killed off.
Klopp’s men pressed aggressively and Firmino and Lallana, in particular, played with swagger and verve under the lights as the cold settled on L4.
It was the most accomplished home performance the club have enjoyed under the German and it completed the league double over City with an aggregate score of 7-1.
Klopp had said victory on Wednesday night wouldn’t earn Liverpool a trophy, but what it did do was offer them more evidence that they’ve got the ability to dismantle any side. Now they need to learn to conjure up performances like these more consistently.
The Reds managed to outclass City for 93 minutes without the services of their two best players as Daniel Sturridge, not in the matchday squad, and Philippe Coutinho, on the bench, were rested for the club’s third game within a week.
Klopp made five changes to the starting line-up from the final - three in defence - and Liverpool still recorded a clean sheet.
Positives overflowed and while the squad felt “sh*t” and “rubbish” on Sunday, they looked like they were standing on shoulders in midweek.
Klopp had promised that with hard work, Liverpool would see the light at the end of the tunnel. They did at Anfield, and it was quite a sight.
- Goal