A much-changed Liverpool continued their Carabao Cup defense at Brighton on Wednesday, with the Reds advancing to the last eight thanks to Cody Gakpo’s 3-2 win.
Brighton 2-3 Liverpool
Carabao Cup 4th round | Amex Stadium
October 30, 2024
target: Adingra 81′, Lamptey 90′; Gakpo 46′ 62′, Diaz 84′
Viteszlav Jaros – 8 (out of 10)
A full senior debut for our No. 3 goalkeeper, who made a huge one-on-one block in 15 minutes and spread out well to make the save. It came after some good footwork to avoid pressure and challenges on him in a frenzied opening spell.
But forget everything. Jaros got himself photographed for the ages after moving a step in the opposite direction just after half-time before making a wonderful fingertip save against the post.
They did a better job of handling high balls in the second half and added some decent blocks in the second half, but they couldn’t stop a rebound from going in or a late change of direction.
Connor Bradley – 7
The Northern Ireland full-back welcomed his return and went straight into the line-up. There he showed a lot of drive and adventure down the wing, often scoring undetected infield runs from deep.
Although they struggled a bit defensively against Adingra, Brighton, who have the best and fastest wide attackers, did not suffer too much and kept the game going.
Jarrell Kwansa – 6
Game time has been sparse for the young defender this season and this may have been reflected in a few early touches, but he was generally positive on the front foot and was quick to mount a few challenges as the Reds were pushed too high. Although it is the deepest, the inside of Brighton’s box is still around 15 meters deep.
In the second half, he won several headers at key moments and made a very good (and nimble) near post block to clear a late Mitoma cross.
But he also overran the ball for 10 minutes to give Brighton a chance, which they ended up scoring.
He recovered well from his setback to chase down Mitoma and make a great tackle in the second half. He then turned the ball into his own goal to make it 3-2 and was immediately substituted. Harsh.
Joe Gomez – 8
In the first half he made several important cuts against Brighton’s counters, and in the second half he sent another routine but important toe poke back to his keeper as Brighton looked to get through on goal.
Efficient and neat, he performed really well when and where Liverpool needed their senior manager to do so.
Andrew Robertson – 6
Only time will tell if this game is the start of a changing of the guard. Some suggested Robbo’s declining form should have been the case, but he was captain on the night and provided some stability amid much change elsewhere.
From the get-go, we had everyone in the middle for Brighton’s big chance, with Tariq Lamptey toasting him too much for comfort. There was one big chance to score but his effort near the low post was blocked after a good score.
He also made a vital and excellent clearance at the far post late in the game. He’s improved defensively, but I wonder if the speed at which he struggles is a sign that he’ll soon be coming out of the wing.
Wataru Endo – 6
Although he showed considerable intensity on the wing trying to win the ball back in the middle, his passes – unsurprisingly lacking in rhythm – were often safe or looped back, frustrating the slot on the touchline on more than one occasion. He overhit a routine pass into the box that could have freed Cody Gakpo for a one-on-one.
Just before the hour mark, Gravenberch spun, but with no one in red nearby, sent a pass straight to Van Hecke.
Tyler Morton – 6
He was in the middle with Endo and was certainly involved a lot, but was often a yard or so off in the speed at which he decided to pass or run in the first half.
But the second attack also started well. He scored an assist by poking a pass over the defense.
Luis Diaz – 7
The right-wing Diaz is not as unpredictable and brutal as the left-wing version and had a tough start with a few false touches, while Kadioglu proved a difficult player to bypass off the dribble.
But in the second half we saw value from Diaz off the ball. Liverpool were under pressure but they doubled back with Bradley to stop Adinla and company from scoring relentlessly. He also sparked a 3-on-1 counter after the Reds somehow won a wasted ball before finishing the scoring with a low shot that went off the post.
Cody Gakpo – 9 – Man of the Match
Not quite a centre-forward as perhaps expected, but now back in his usual left-wing role and, even without considering his goals, he has shown enough strength to suggest he could now be a starting option in that side.
Hard-working back tracking, good hold-up play, and always willing to outball and get runners on. The Rocket, who scored the first goal with a full swing, didn’t deflect much and lunged for the top corner with a classic cut-in, then finished the second goal with a fierce low angle.
He could have had an assist, but Szoboszlai wasted the opportunity. Although it wasn’t the cleanest pass.
While he was substituted in number 70, Diaz continues to indicate he will start on Saturday.
Dominic Szoboszlai – 6
The starting XI has led to suggestions that Szoboszlai could feature on the wings of the front three. Instead he and Curtis Jones were the two prongs of a false nine, sticking around and pressing forward without a recognized striker on the pitch.
Perhaps Dominic was nominally the “forward” of choice, but he certainly wasn’t there to hold down the fort or play any kind of target man.
Can you scrape the header? Then he missed one point off an awkward rebound, but beyond that it didn’t matter much in the final third. Despite the aforementioned pass not being entirely friendly, he missed a perfect sitter on a one-on-one with not a clean enough first touch.
Curtis Jones – 7
Another new role for Curtis was much closer to the starting position of his academy days than his life at senior level, but he worked diligently in harmony with Szoboszlai to press high, winning the ball back as quickly as possible and still dropping into midfield. When needed.
After a later substitution he returned deeper into midfield and immediately seemed unable to get the ball back.
replacement product
Alexis Mac Allister (for Endo, 63′) – 7 – Neat touch, deep role. I couldn’t chase after my goal fast enough.
Trey Nyoni (for Morton, 63′) – 7 – Aside from an overly adventurous flick that gave away possession on a midfield turn, he was a good addition to the pitch, moving the ball well and firing one effort wide.
Darwin Nunez (for Szoboszlai, 70′) – 6 – Too many things didn’t go his way, but his usual efforts did.
Mohamed Salah (forward, 70′) – 6 – barely got a kick under the wings.
Ibrahima Konate (for Quansah, 90′) – N/A – I’m trying to organize things during downtime. I was immediately (incorrectly) booked.
Subs not used: Kelleher, Van Dijk, Tsimikas, Young.
Arne Slot – 8
Well, we won.
The eight changes to the team make it clear where Slot’s priorities are (rightly), and that is not to ensure Brighton can take things easy against a tired team at the weekend.
With the XI lined up to the point where at least one player was always in an odd position, it was clear this was a game he wanted to manage minutes above all else.
The false nine (or top Szoboszlai, depending on how you look at it) didn’t really work, but there was still a clear pattern, and efforts and opportunities were created to make it clear that this was Liverpool and a slot team.
We need other members of the squad to be healthy and dependable so we can’t complain about team changes, and his replacements step up their level on the pitch as the game progresses.
Questions may be raised about the way he dealt with Quansah, but he did a good job of managing minutes to ensure that a handful of ‘first XI’ players played 90 matches.
It ended up being closer than it needed to be, but the Reds still remain in contention. And we face the same opponent again a few days later. Lesson learned?
Brighton 2-3 Liverpool
