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If Jurgen Klopp was not in the mood to joke about early kick-offs before Saturday’s game, he was afterwards more than willing to make light about how long they go on for. It was put to the Liverpool manager that Harvey Elliott’s 91st-minute goal at Crystal Palace was the 16th stoppage-time match-winner of his time at Liverpool.
“Yeah, but it gets easier because we play 15 minutes extra.”
It was 10 in this case, after a series of stoppages that involved a Palace penalty being overturned and a Jordan Ayew second yellow card that Roy Hodgson was furious about. Klopp admitted Liverpool were “very lucky” but there’s obviously more than that to so many late goals. There’s also more to it than just psychological resolve, at least in this case.
It is tactical and technical.
“The subs were super influential,” Klopp said. “That’s the story of our season.”
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It may also be the story of this new team, that is already being termed as Liverpool 2.0.
Although Klopp visibly bristled at the idea that his title-winning team had a best team – going on to name different variations and options when asked – it’s probably fair to say there was an XI that people would name if asked: Alisson Becker; Trent Alexander-Arnold, Joel Matip, Virgil van Dijk, Andy Robertson; Jordan Henderson, Fabinho, Gini Wijnaldum; Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane. And, even outside some of those players, there were generally fixed options.
Outside a few obvious stars like Alisson, Alexander-Arnold and Salah and new options such as Dominik Szoboszlai, Liverpool do not really have that now.
It’s arguable they don’t even have an ideal system at all.
Part of that might be that a new team is finding its feet. Part of it might be, as Klopp made a pointed comment about, that it’s impossible to have amid so many games where you can barely prepare. Part of it is injuries, too.
The full effect, however, is that Liverpool always have a different option to try and get around an opposition side. The 2-1 win over Palace was a perfect example of this.
Klopp admitted what was highly visible. The starting XI had not been good. He spoke about how they were too “passive” and admitted their timing was “horrendous”. Klopp referenced how attackers were running at the wrong moments, making surges into the box when they should have delayed, or vice versa.
This was something you generally didn’t see from that famous attacking three in the two years between 2018 and 2020 when they won the Champions League and Premier League. They were so in tune and connected, though, that they were impossible to pull apart.
The same faith in who is on the pitch isn’t required here. Klopp can instead have much more trust in a deeper squad. Hence he changed it up on a few occasions at Selhurst Park.
Jurgen Klopp has guided Liverpool back to the top of the Premier League
He even said he “tried everything”. They eventually found a way.
Curtis Jones offered the deftness that had been missing before his pass for Salah’s equaliser. Elliott then just went for it, but then in a period where the team was working much better.
That is one factor in why they can keep going. All three of their game-changing stoppage time goals this season – Darwin Nunez against Newcastle United, Luis Diaz against Luton Town, now Elliott against Palace – have come from subs.
There are now multiple possible teams in one. The wonder is what it will do for how the story of their season ends.
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