In the first leg of the 2021/22 Champions League 1/8 knockout round that ended this morning, Liverpool of the Reds won 2-0 against defending Serie A champions Inter Milan to take the lead over two legs. Klopp's platooning in the game was widely praised, and his substitution adjustment was also very timely, providing a guarantee for his team to score three points. On the other hand, Inter coach Xiaoyin does have problems in the details, and the old problem that the team is difficult to score when it has an advantage has reappeared, and it has encountered criticism. However, considering Inter's current squad and injury situation, he is also slightly helpless.
Starter: Bastoni returns quickly, Liverpool take the strongest position
Due to the matchup between the giants and the encounter in the knockout round, the managers of both sides did not dare to have any negligence and sent the main force to the battle as much as possible. Inter, who play at home, have more injuries, Barrera's suspension has a great impact, and Joaquin Correa's injury also makes it difficult to adjust the front. Although Bastoni returned from the line of fire, it was difficult to protect how to maintain his form. New signings Kecedo and Gossens are indeed worth looking forward to, but this round of matches can not be played. Liverpool's side is incomparable, and the Red Arrow three with TAA and VVD are indeed very strong.
Before the game, the media was also very active and non-stop. After all, one is last season's Serie A champion, the recovery is just in time, and the other is the king who has recently reached the top of football, the strength is strong, and the encounter must be wonderful. Many celebrities and legends also came out to shout and cheer up their team platform. Inter Chairman Zhang Kangyang also came to the scene to cheer on the Black And Blue Army.
Opening: Inter want to preemptively strike
Inzaghi Jr. and Klopp came up with a familiar system of 3-5-2 and 4-3-3 respectively, and the personnel arrangements were also in line with the expectations of the outside world before the game. After the start of the match, Inter, who played in Meazza, clearly had the advantage of time and place, and they entered the form earlier, and the highly motivated Lautaro and Dumfries also created a threat to Liverpool on the right side. Unfortunately, the shot was deflected. In the first 10 minutes, it can be seen that Xiao Yin, who knows that the thickness of the team is not as good as the Red Army, wants to "surprise and win" to seize the opportunity, and the high-pressure pressing situation is fierce.
Inter's overall front is on the line
After 10 minutes of no gains, Inter began to enter the first wave of adjustments, which also gave the Reds the opportunity to press up. From the 10th minute onwards, Liverpool threatened inter goals in succession, scoring four shots in a short period of time, and inter were in front of goal. In this period, Liverpool's midfielders Thiago and Jota formed a dual core configuration with the ball, one in the back and one in the front, and both of them can form a "split side + assault" double selection mode after taking the ball, resulting in Inter always facing a choice. Gradually, the Blue and Black Army also lost the "courage" to grab the "courage", and the two sides returned to the balance of power.
When I went to work: it was loud and colorful, and Inter surprised
Before the game, many people predicted that Inter would be difficult to reach Liverpool's strong side, and it was "sooner or later" to lose. Although the Nerazzurri are also well aware of their own squad, they still give their own countermeasures according to local conditions, and Inzaghi Jr. also has a good adjustment of the midfield in the first half, showing the tactical wisdom of Italian football. Under the rational strategy of "left and right", Inter not only did not suffer losses, but also gained an advantage.
In midfield, Inzaghi Jr. sent Vidal to replace Barrera, who could not play because of his cards. The Chilean was very calm in this game, changed the past extreme problems, and brought a lot of help to the team on both the offensive and defensive ends. His multi-faceted and all-round attributes are fundamental to the tandem of Char khanoglu and Brozovic, and although the circle constructed by the three is not as dynamic as Barrera's, the back plug is also stable and reliable. Vidal's more fighting and confrontation ability is the foundation of Xiaoyin's tactics.
Vidal's running position is very lively
Klopp took Thiago and Elliott to play the starter, the purpose is to combine their ball control ability, quickly push the whole system, under the impact of Salahmane's speed, disrupt the Inter lineup, resulting in a disconnect between the three lines. Then in the first half, Inter's midfield position was fixed, Liverpool did not get a chance in these areas, and the Better Paper Reds midfielders played average. On the contrary, Inter, the midfielders have the ability to fight, under their collective work, very bravely encamped forward, forcing the Liverpool midfield multi-organizers, the war burned to the enemy's half. It worked.
Inter's system was intact and not squashed by Liverpool
While dismantling the opponent's attacking system, Xiaoyin also has his own vision, that is, to use the pass of the experienced Perisic and partner Char Khan Oulu to tear liverpool's right side of the road defense. This move was tried and tested in the first half, and the multiple forward insertions of the sabre caused trouble for the Red Army, and under the dispatch of Qar khan, his running efficiency also improved a lot. Creating more opportunities in the "labor-saving" mode is the secret given by Xiaoyin. People lack energy and energy, and can only be "opportunistic". Under the pressure of Inter as a whole, Salah and Arnold's golden partner was cut off, and there was little opportunity to rush forward.
0-45 minutes, Liverpool played poorly on the right
Inter did have an advantage in the first half (yellow represents Inter blue for Liverpool, higher the column, the greater the advantage)
With TAA unable to step forward and Salah lacking passing support, Jota had to retreat several times to help his midfield teammates organize. His running distance and heat zone map also give evidence. However, for him, some strong people are difficult, the series efficiency is not high enough, and the problem is still unsolvable. Most of the attack on the Reds side of the entire half was initiated by Robertson on the right, and his sudden front forced Inter's "indulgent" front pressure to be recycled, and also created a rare breathing space for teammates.
Half-time adjustment: Surviving Inter's "last" madness, Klopp adjusts the value display
Seeing the problem, Klopp immediately gave his own adjustments, and his insight and courage were enough to prove that he was a world-class coach. In the second half, Firmino replaced the average Jota and Liverpool entered a new era. The move was clever, with the Reds quickly changing their minds while Inter stayed still.
Scale of Inter's attack frequencies
In the 50-60 minute period, Inter still maintained a certain advantage, and they saw problems on the right side of Liverpool, almost wild attacks. Unfortunately, due to physical factors and the frequent occurrence of old problems that could not be attacked for a long time, the Blue and Black Army became more and more impatient. After creating a few threats, the stability of the pass began to diminish. During this period, many of their shots were blocked by the van Dijk-led defence, and the Dutch centre-back was worth thousands of dollars.
Arnold was beaten behind Van Dijk in a roar
Although Inter is strong during this period, it is also the "last" carnival, and they will face huge problems if they are not physically superior and have few backhands.
Henderson's important role
At the time of choice, Klopp continued to choose the main trust system (salah + Arnold, Robertson + Thiago bilateral combination), and deployed the rest of the candidates. Henderson's play can be described as the finishing touch, under his running, containment, Liverpool finally regained the midfield advantage that had been lost for a long time, and Thiago was no longer tired of defending, and had enough energy to organize the offensive system. However, Xiao Yin chose to wait, and he only replaced lautaro, who was really unsupportable.
From 75 minutes onwards, the value of Klopp's adjustment began to stand out, Firmino's deployment in the midfield began to show its power, and Henderson's run gave the team the opportunity to interact back and forth, so that Robertson's assist was a natural success, and Salah's goal also showed the diametrically opposite mentality of the two sides. After the Reds scored two goals, the match ending was locked, Inter regrettably lost, and Liverpool took the victory. Inter Milan fell into crisis in the first round, and the second leg wanted to reverse at Anfield, the possibility is very low.
Two goals for Liverpool
Post-match evaluation: Inter have made old mistakes again, and the Reds have shown high standards
There is no doubt that 70 minutes ago Inter had a slight advantage and they also had plenty of chances to score or kill the game. Helplessly, the team was once again overturned in the case of a good situation, repeating the ruts of VS Real Madrid, Milan and other games. Of course, the untimely adjustment of indistinguishment of inzaghi Jr. is an important incentive, but the lack of thickness and manpower of the team's lineup system is also a factor that must be considered. The tired Lautaro and Zheko should have rested long ago, but who to change? This month, Inter have lost to Milan, Liverpool and a draw with Napoli has also allowed them to surrender their top positions. The next game of the Nerazzurri really can't afford to lose.
On the other hand, on the Red Army's side, whether it is tenacity or detail control, as well as the mastery of the situation, it is obviously more advanced, more active and more direct. Klopp's courage was also highly praised after the game, which was both a direct demonstration of ability and the confidence of "surplus food at home" that Liverpool could indeed play a "very rich" battle. This season, they are also definitely champions league champions, very favorable competitors. Don't underestimate them, after all, they are 6 champions. In the Competition in the Premier League, blue moons have a high probability of "playing the victory in advance", so Liverpool can also moderately devote more energy to the Champions League. They have the capital to go further in this event.
(Li Qian)