LFC's Bland Draw Little More Than A Training Match

Welcome back to me.  I was down in Orange Beach, Alabama broadcasting the NAIA Women's Soccer Championships.  I missed out on a great Liverpool performance and one that, well, was not so great.  Alas, that is probably what this team is.  Fans were hoping for the best of LFC in their last Europa League group match but got a little bit of both sides of Liverpool instead.  The Reds were in Switzerland to take on Sion.  Both teams were very lackluster in the opening 45.

Liverpool pushed forward a few times and Divock Origi might have scored on the opening chance if he went for a header instead of lunging to get a foot on it.  Outside of that, there was very little to speak of other than decent tactics.  The second half seemed poised to be a little more entertaining with Sion needing to be more positive, given that their spot in the second round was in doubt if Liverpool scored and other results held.  However, the chances for either side were few and far between.

Liverpool had a very good build up in the 54th minute only to have Firmino push it too far in front and lose possession - something he was guilty of for much of the game.  Liverpool had another chance in the 70th minute where Origi got in behind enough to force the goalkeeper out.  The keeper did get his right hand to the ball just enough to knock it away from the Belgian and Liverpool were unable to get enough support up to help finish it off.  Sadly for the Reds, that was one of the last chances they would see.

One of the biggest bright spots, on a night where there wasn't a lot to discuss, was left back, Brad Smith.  He set up the Origi chance early in the contest and nearly connected with his teammate again in the 84th minute.  He was decent defensively and very good going forward.  It might be nothing more than a good performance or he could be a player to watch for in the near future.  If nothing else, the Australian definitely looks like he will be a physical force.

In the end, this game was little more than a training exercise.  It was not completely worthless.  You get valuable game time for younger players and players, such as Jordan Henderson, who are returning from injury.  These are valuable in the sense that you're going against experienced players.  Regardless of their talent level, Sion provides an opponent that isn't yourself.  Training ground exercises and scrimmages can only do so much.  Even academy and reserve games only prove so much.  So, despite many fans' opinion that Europa League is a waste of time, it does provide valuable experience for players and valuable looks for the manager and staff.

On the flip side of that coin, Jurgen Klopp will eventually have to start prioritizing certain fixtures over the others.  To this point, he has mainly used as strong a team as he possibly could in each game, while still being sensitive to potential injury issues.  As the season progresses and Klopp gets his first taste of how busy English football gets during the holidays, he will need to learn that yes, you want to win every game but some are still more important than others.

This Europa season looks interesting going forward.  Liverpool topped their group so are in a decent position if they choose to put full effort into the competition.  That said, there are several name clubs that made the drop from Champions League to Europa.  It could make for some interesting match ups in the knockout stage.

Random Thoughts:
- Firmino is a good example of several things.  He is extremely frustrating.  He shows you just enough to get excited and then completely disappears.  He is also an example of what is wrong with modern football philosophy and the reaction of the fans.  So often, players are not given time to grow.  There are several players in the world that are just unable to perform on the biggest stages on the biggest clubs.  Chicharito seems to be one of those.  There are so many, though, that are given up on because they don't live up to expectations set by fans based on performances in different leagues.  Scoring a ton of goals for a midtable team in Germany doesn't automatically transfer over to England because there is a different style within the leagues.  But fans, and some managers, don't want to give the player time to grow or aren't allowed the give the player time because their job security doesn't allow it.  Some players just need a season to learn and then can show what they truly will be in that setting.

- Not related to this game, but I've come to the realization that Liverpool have to give up on Daniel Sturridge.  If they want to hold on to him as a sub or to use in a rotation or even to drive competition in the future for starting spots then fine.  But they simply cannot believe he will ever be healthy for an entire season anymore and need to find a player that can start in his stead.  This may not happen in the January window, but the combination of Sturridge's injuries and the inability of the wing players to be consistent forces Liverpool to again seek out a striker.

Walk On