Liverpool’s #1 had many positives to say after Liverpool’s victory, which included a well-earned cleansheet.
Liverpool managed to extend their lead to 9 points at the top of the table with a well-earned victory over the Premier League’s in-form team in AFC Bournemouth. It was a date that, given the run of results put up by the Cherries, folks had been pointing at for most of this month as a potentially difficult tie.
In the end, the final scoreline manages to somehow both accurately capture the gap between the two times while also failing to express just how close the match was. They say margins in the Premier League are tight and that football is a game of inches; this felt perfectly encapsulated by the fact that Bournemouth players rattled the Liverpool woodwork a few times in the match, though. looking at the overall xG posted by Bournemouth (1), one might generally conclude that Bournemouth’s threat is made more flattering by only focusing on highlight package.
Following the match, Alisson Becker and Mohamed Salah were both interviewed about their reactions to this win.
Alisson Becker on the the quality of this Bournemouth
“I think they are really intense. If you look to the data they are one of the top teams for running, for intensity. The way they play, they are aggressive as well. Marking, they never let a player turn or receive the ball free so you have to be focused, really sharp in every situation when you have the ball: try to create, move a lot, so this intensity takes a lot of energy for you to win this kind of game.”
Mohamed Salah on comparisons to previous title runs
“Yeah, I think slightly different but last season we were also very close to that number [of points] but again, as I’ve said before, we need to stay humble and just take it each game at a time. Focus on each game – we don’t have to think further, just think about each game.”
A piece from Ali that I thought was fun is that he mentioned Mo committing to playing defense with the rest of the team as key to the victory. This felt evident as I watched, players rotating and covering for each other with vigor and purpose throughout the match.
Liverpool will need to continue to work together to hold off some stubborn and ascendant teams over the next week. Hold on to your butts!