Liverpool gave a masterclass in poor defending as Tottenham took full advantage at Wembley stadium. Harry Kane speaks after Tottenham thump Liverpool 4-1, days after an impressive draw against Real Madrid in the Champions League. Liverpool gave a masterclass in poor defending as Tottenham took full advantage at Wembley stadium.
Having seen his team record consecutive clean sheets this week, Jurgen Klopp will have been hoping that his team had turned a corner defensively. Sadly they haven't. His defence and goalkeeper conspired to gift Spurs four goals and it could easily have been more. It was horrific.
Positives
There is nothing positive to take from this at all. Nothing at all.
Negatives
Dejan Lovren's performance was so far from being acceptable that the Croatia international could have no complaints if he didn't play for the club again. Allowing Harry Kane to get in behind him once was bad, but to do it again soon after was criminal. This wasn't all about Lovren though, as Liverpool recovered from the wounds he inflicted only for Joel Matip and Simon Mignolet to make similarly poor errors and put the game out of reach.
Manager rating out of 10
3 -- This loss has Klopp's fingerprints all over it. Yes, it was individual mistakes that cost Liverpool rather than any specific tactical issue but these are players who Klopp has continued to show faith in through numerous unacceptable performances. At least he acted swiftly in putting Lovren out of his misery, but why move Emre Can to right-back when he's only ever been a liability in that position? The goals against column this season is completely embarrassing and the buck stops with the manager.
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Player ratings (1-10; 10 = best. Players introduced after 70 minutes get no rating)
GK Simon Mignolet, 3 -- Came out needlessly for Tottenham's first goal and made Kane's mind up for him. He later flapped at a cross that resulted in Kane's second and Tottenham's fourth. Did make one decent save with his foot to deny Kane in the first half, but this was a very bad day for the Belgium international.
DF Joe Gomez, 6 -- Began the game at right-back and did little wrong. Switched to the middle when Lovren was hauled off and stuck to his task well. The defensive shambles that took place had little to do with the youngster and he probably deserves a chance to play in the centre more often now.
DF Joel Matip, 3 -- Not as bad as his central defensive partner but that's damning with the faintest of praise. Pitiful header straight to Dele Alli led to the most decisive goal of the game with the last kick of the first half. Liverpool had clawed their way back into the game at that point but Matip's error effectively handed the points to the Londoners.
DF Dejan Lovren, 1 -- Sometimes you can play the perfect game against Kane and he'll still beat you, so when you play as awfully as Lovren did you have absolutely no chance. This was an utterly pathetic display and he was fortunate not to be hooked immediately after the second goal. Somehow he survived for half an hour being eventually being replaced.
DF Alberto Moreno, 7 -- Still seen by many as a problem but the current reality is that Moreno is the very least of Liverpool's worries defensively. He's making far fewer mistakes than anybody else and played well once again.
MF Jordan Henderson, 4 -- No shortage of effort and kept going right until the end but apart from assisting on Salah's first-half goal, the midfielder made little impact on the game. Not exactly a captain's performance, that's for sure.
Salah was always positive for Liverpool but it didn't matter given the heavy defeat.
MF James Milner, 4 -- Lots of endeavour and did his best to keep going, but neither Milner nor Henderson could deal with the pace and energy of Son Heung-Min. The veteran brought a late save out of Hugo Lloris after a nice exchange of passes with Salah, but that was a rare highlight on a miserable day.
MF Emre Can, 3 -- Never got into the game as a midfielder and predictably struggled when moved to right-back. Lost the ball cheaply and then compounded the error by conceding a free-kick from which Spurs scored just before half time.
FW Philippe Coutinho, 7 -- Spurs did a good job keeping the in form Brazil international in check but he never stopped trying to make things happen and only a wonder save from Lloris kept him off the scoresheet. One of the few who didn't let himself down.
FW Roberto Firmino, 4 -- Largely anonymous. Worked hard but offered no goal threat and could have been brought off much sooner than he was.
FW Mohamed Salah, 7 -- A danger to Spurs throughout but didn't see enough of the ball to make it count. Found the net with a scruffy finish and went close to adding to it in the second half only to be foiled by Lloris. Liverpool's best player.
Substitutes
FW Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, 6 -- Not the easiest game to come into but at least tried to take the game to Spurs with some positive running. It didn't lead to anything but in the continued absence of Sadio Mane, Liverpool really should be looking to start the former Arsenal man and free up Coutinho to pull the strings in midfield.
FW Daniel Sturridge, NR -- Brought on late to replace Firmino. Did nothing, but that was to be expected.
MF Marko Grujic, NR -- Replaced Can for the closing seconds.
Dave Usher is one of ESPN's Liverpool bloggers and the founder of LFC fanzine and website The Liverpool Way. Follow him on Twitter: @theliverpoolway.
Source: espn.co.uk