Off the Press: Where is the Gegenpress?
Written by Rabbil Sikdar (Twitter @RA_Sikdar)
Liverpool’s decline was embodied by a point in the second-half when deep in Chelsea’s half, the Blues were surrounded. And yet, as if it were a training exercise, they were able to move the ball without any threat, through Liverpool’s line. It was a small detail yet one that told the story of the match, and of Liverpool’s implosion since Christmas.
Another defeat at Anfield after years of not losing there is a bitter pill to swallow. A sense of decay has settled around this team. The combinations aren’t working, the cohesion is gone, the team don’t look sharp or incisive and the purposeful creativity has entirely disappeared. The title is gone but right now Champions League football seems unlikely too.
There are so many things to say about this team but right now is the sheer exhaustion both running through the team and around the club. Chelsea were deserved victors. They were in control and were never threatened. Liverpool were authors of their own pain here. The pressing, the greatest playmaker in the world according to Jurgen Klopp, has been shattered by fatigue and injuries. The intensity is a pale imitation of what it once was. There are glimpses of the aggression but it is fleeting and unable to endure the adversity. Beyond Mo Salah and Curtis Jones, this is not a team that looks capable of goals.
Klopp needs to address the dissolution of the gegenpress. Yes it’s been modified over the years but its essential tenets remain. A narrow, compact, aggressive system in which players position themselves between opponents, waiting for the trigger moment to apply pressure. Generally this manifests when opponents are shepherded onto the flanks where the passing options are slashed and it’s easier to recover the ball. This system focused on trapping opponents and not allowing them to put together a string of passes. It’s why Pep Guardiola’s teams have struggled so much against Klopp, because the German has made sure his team aggressively controls space while the other team has the ball.
Central to that has been Bobby Firmino. But it’s clear his legs have gone and with it the pressure has declined. Salah is by no means a selfish player but he isn’t as aggressive in his defensive work as the others. Yet Mane and Firmino have also dropped off. It was striking how Chelsea were able to recover the ball and then proceed without being confronted with the familiar wave of red fury. This leaves Liverpool’s high-line, made up of slow centre-backs, extremely vulnerable to repeated long balls.
Their goal was born from this failure to press. Kante was able to sweep a long-range ball without much pressure to Mason Mount. Even more alarming was the failure of the team to get back. Mount didn’t let Fabinho get close to him for his goal. It was a remarkable finish and fully justified.
But Liverpool’s inability to apply pressure and defend as a team was striking. Fatigue is as much a mental as it is a physical team. This side has been running relentlessly for years but here it was walking. The intense, compact shape that aggressively crowds the central areas of the pitch and reduces the space between the lines was gone. This is why those who call for the defence to sit deeper are missing the point. All it will do is leave a lot of space between the defence and the midfield unless the entire team drops off too.
The other aspect is that in possession, the team is sterile and flat. The 4–3–3 isn’t working where only Curtis Jones is a progressive midfielder. The full-backs are no longer arriving into space how they did, nor operating with the creative confidence they did before. The return of Diego Jota should signal the end of Firmino’s status as Liverpool’s leading forward. The front three desperately need fresh legs and energy, and Jota provides this. An alarming sign of the team’s decay has been the failure to stretch defences. The football has been turgid and slow, but a fresh face could spark something different. In particular, Mane might be boosted by a change. His slump in form and confidence has been disconcerting, and against Chelsea there was always a sense that when he got the ball, it would end up with a Chelsea player.
And then there is Thiago. He is a wonderful technician but when a team lacks intensity, speed and aggression, he isn’t the answer. There were moments when Liverpool had a potential breakaway, but Thiago played the safer pass. Liverpool’s most threatening midfielder has been Jones and it isn’t even a contest. But what does it say about this midfield that a youngster has been carrying them?
Liverpool aren’t getting the best out of Thiago but perhaps aren’t in the place right now to do so. Should Fabinho be returned to the midfield, it should be in his place. The alternative is to play a 4–2–3–1 with Wijnaldum and Thiago sitting while Fabinho remains in defence. Perhaps more crucially, is whether Keita can be returned into the starting eleven. Liverpool have badly missed his spark since Christmas.
Right now, it’s difficult to see Liverpool’s season ending with any sort of smile. Champions League football is very unlikely next season now. The only consoling thought is that every season eventually ends, which means this nightmare cannot run on for too long.
