On Saturday, Liverpool let down those who were hoping the Reds’ comeback win over Swansea City on Tuesday was a turning point in their season.
Liverpool traveled north to face Newcastle United at St. James’ Park in the Premier League and left empty-handed and demoralized following a 1-0 defeat in which it was second best in every facet of the game.
While the scoreline was close and the contest was competitive, the disappointment over Liverpool’s result and performance will outweigh any moral victories.
Newcastle seized the momentum within 15 minutes. The hosts were content to allow Liverpool to possess the ball in its own half, but they swarmed and pressured the Reds whenever they dared to venture beyond the halfway line. Newcastle’s speedy forwards were menacing on the counter-attack from the outset. These patterns continued without interruption until the final whistle.
Liverpool passed at a sluggish tempo, and its attacking play lacked invention and cutting edge. The midfielders and forwards didn’t link-up well, and the much-maligned Mario Balotelli was an isolated figure as a service-starved lone striker. Balotelli now hasn’t scored in eight league games for Liverpool.
Liverpool failed to register a shot on goal in the first half. Balotelli’s two long-distance shots — in the 49th and 55th minutes — and Philippe Coutinho’s 57th-minute header (which wouldn’t have counted, as he was offside) were the only serious threats Liverpool posed to Newcastle goalkeeper Tim Krul.
Liverpool’s players might be nominally better than Newcastle’s, but the Magpies’ showed a better technical quality than the Reds. Newcastle also was tactically well-organized, preventing Liverpool from reaching a higher gear. Liverpool had the advantage of an extra day’s rest and made more changes to the starting lineup, but Newcastle looked physically fresher and more energetic — perhaps because they were being roared on by most of the 52,166 fans in attendance.
The most disappointing aspect of Liverpool’s loss was the mental one. Liverpool has pulled itself out of sticky situations in 2014-15 through sheer will power and determination — most recently Tuesday against Swansea City. However, when Ayoze Perez scored in the 73rd minute, Liverpool barely mustered a response. In fact, Newcastle might have won by a bigger margin were it not for a few timely saves by Simon Mignolet in the last quarter-hour of the game.
Newcastle manager Alan Pardew deserves credit for his team’s comprehensive win. The inverse is that Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers must accept blame and criticism for his team’s loss. The changes Pardew made to his starting lineup sustained the level of performance Newcastle showed Wednesday against Manchester City, while Liverpool lost whatever zip it had Tuesday after Rodgers’ rotations. Injuries forced Pardew to make two substitutions before the second half kicked off, but his replacements, Perez for instance, had more impact that Rodgers’.
Liverpool-Newcastle was a story of revivals and false dawns. Newcastle now has won four games in a row, proving its resurgence is real. Liverpool was dreaming of riding a winning streak of its own when it hosts Chelsea next Saturday. Instead the Reds will look to bounce back against the best team in the league. If Liverpool suffers another setback, it will be 15 points behind Chelsea in the race to lift the Premier League trophy in May.
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Photo by Scott Heppell/The Associated Press
