LEIPZIG – A moment’s hesitation can be the difference.
RB Leipzig sprung forward and ran at Liverpool at the start of Wednesday’s Champions League encounter, but that extra split second in possession and the opportunity was gone, whether it was a passing lane shutting off or a late cutback skipping behind the attacker. The final ball was too late or simply never came. A little more belief, and a bright opening could’ve turned into a positive result.
Liverpool were experienced, almost cocksure, and perhaps the exact team Leipzig want to emulate. It was one of the strongest examples of the more measured approach implemented by Arne Slot. It was decisive and dogged; winning duels, nudging the ball onto the next red shirt, and aiming for control more than anything else.
There was no rush, no needless or wasted touches when Kostas Tsimikas pushed the ball to Cody Gakpo, ran between two opponents to meet the return pass on the other side, and then clipped a first-time cross to the edge of the 6-yard box.
Mohamed Salah aimed a header toward the bottom corner. It seemed to be going in, but Darwin Nunez stretched to make sure with a short-range redirection, scoring the only goal of the game.
“We started well but went behind from Liverpool’s first chance,” Leipzig head coach Marco Rose said after the match.
From then on, the contest was largely played on Liverpool’s terms.
Slot credited Virgin van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate’s oft-domineering center-back partnership and some good saves from Caoimhin Kelleher in his postgame press conference. But overall, he was pleased with Liverpool’s response after he felt they lacked control in Sunday’s 2-1 Premier League win over Chelsea.
“We had for a large part of the game, total dominance,” Slot reflected, adding, “This is how I like to see our team play.”
Within minutes of the second half, Dominik Szoboszlai took his turn to pick at the stitches that Leipzig were trying to thread between their defense and midfield. He darted at Arthur Vermeeren. The under-pressure Belgian midfielder jabbed at a pass, the subsequent exchanges were hurried, and Liverpool soon pinched the ball and carved out another opening.
Leipzig have developed a reputation for playing with ambition and risk, but on this occasion they simply weren’t able to go toe to toe with Liverpool.
The German side didn’t seem fully convinced of its ability to wriggle through the press or attempt intricate play through the middle.
“I didn’t like how we played in possession in certain phases of the game,” Rose said. “We had moments in which we had to suffer, but they were mostly our own fault. We gave the ball away too quickly, lost our rhythm, and invited Liverpool to transition quickly.”
Rose stressed the importance of Leipzig seizing their moments. The times that they were able to play vertically were most promising, bypassing the midfield with a quick ball into the attackers, but they didn’t happen often enough or simply ended in disappointment.
Lois Openda had two disallowed goals from the three times he was called offside, and although the third occasion wouldn’t have mattered regardless of its outcome, it didn’t reflect well on his decision-making. Presented with an inviting opportunity to shoot in the 91st minute, he somewhat perplexingly and inaccurately squared the ball for Yussuf Poulsen. The chance disappeared, and Leipzig’s hope of grabbing a last-gasp draw went with it.
Most tellingly, Leipzig’s best player was goalkeeper Peter Gulacsi. His best save of all was an excellent first-half stop to thwart a Nunez header. After the break, he impressively tipped over a Van Dijk header and produced a one-handed save to deny a powerful 89th-minute blast from Gakpo.
There was little Gulacsi could do when Alexis Mac Allister collected a slick Szoboszlai backheel and guided a shot toward goal from the edge of the box. The Argentine’s effort clipped the bar and went over.
“Our position in the Champions League hasn’t exactly improved, but we have a chance with our remaining five games,” Rose said after three straight losses to begin the league phase. “We will keep working hard and believing in ourselves.”
