Table of Content
A James Milner attempted cross deflected off Håvard Nordtveit and that went down as an own goal to make it 0–2 in the 74th. Hoffenheim responded with a Mark Uth 87th-minute goal but, despite the nervy finish, Liverpool saw off the final minutes of the 1–2 victory in the away leg. Liverpool returned home for the first time in the season where on 19 August they played Crystal Palace.
In the fourth round proper of the FA Cup, on 27 January, Liverpool took on West Brom. Firmino's chip in the fifth gave the early lead, but a four-minute double to Jay Rodriguez put West Brom up 1–2 in the 11th. Video assistant referee replay played a crucial first half role as it denied Craig Dawson a goal to make the game 1–3, then awarded a penalty to Liverpool, which was subsequently missed by Firmino. West Brom added a third with an own goal from Matip late in first half added time. Salah put the Reds within one in the 78th, but the 2–3 scoreline stood and the Reds were stunned at home by the second from bottom Baggies in the cup. The final fixture of the month was on 30 January where the Reds visited John Smith's Stadium and Huddersfield Town.
Liverpool reveal new home kit for 2017-18
The Reds bounced back in the next game winning 0–4 with goals from Coutinho, Lovren, and Salah before the half, and Firmino after. In an exciting affair, Liverpool went 0–2 up through Coutinho in the 26th and Salah in the 52nd minute, but Arsenal took the lead with three goals in five minutes through goals from Alexis Sánchez, Granit Xhaka and Mesut Özil. The Reds evened the score at 3–3 with a 71st-minute goal from Firmino giving the team their 8th league draw in 19 games, at the time the second most in the league. Liverpool then returned to Anfield for their Boxing Day fixture against bottom-place Swansea City.
In the 67th minute, Gylfi Sigurðsson scored on a counterattack to equalize the game at one. In the 84th minute, however, van Dijk in his Liverpool debut scored off a corner kick making it 2–1 and marking a second game in a row with a late headed goal from a defender to win the game. The day after, on 6 January, the club made the official announcement that Coutinho would be leaving for Barcelona on a deal that Paul Joyce of The Times reported could reach up to £142 million.
Matt Beard reaction | ‘It was another good win and clean sheet for us’
The first came from Sturridge in the 50th, the second from Firmino just eight minutes later, and the final coming from Wijnaldum in the 75th to cap off a 3–0 victory. Estimated delivery dates - opens in a new window or tab include seller's dispatch time, origin postcode, destination postcode and time of acceptance, and will depend on the postage service selected and receipt of cleared payment. Liverpool began their preseason in the same manner as last year, a visit to Tranmere Rovers on 12 July.
Following a four-day mini camp in Marbella the Reds returned home for their final fixture of the month on 24 February against West Ham. Can opened the scoring with a header off a corner in the 29th, and Salah in the 51st and Firmino in the 57th added on to the lead. Michail Antonio added one for the Hammers in the 59th to put the score at 3–1, but a Mane goal in the 77th to make it 4–1 put the game away and, for the day, the Reds moved into second place. November opened up for Liverpool on the first of the month at Anfield in their home fixture against Maribor in the Champions League group stage.
Goalscorers
Following the triumph in the league, the Reds hosted Everton for the second time in under 30 days, this time in the third round of the 2017–18 FA Cup on 5 January. While Everton received the hotly contested penalty in the first meeting, Liverpool was the one to benefit from a controversial penalty call as Mason Holgate brought Lallana down inside the box and Milner converted the penalty in the 35th minute. The derby match also featured Holgate and Firmino getting into a verbal altercation shortly before the end of the first half following a push from Holgate to Firmino that sent the latter over the advertising boards.
The Reds then saw a second goal in the 25th minute off a Wijnaldum header on a corner kick, marking his first away goal for Liverpool. The match entered the half 1–2 and with Liverpool in strong position to advance, however Roma continue to attack. Dzeko scored in the 52nd to level the match score, then Radja Nainggolan hit an exceptional long shot in the 86th. Finally, Klavan was penalized for Liverpool and Nainggolan achieved a brace off a spot kick in the 94th, but with Roma needed one more for extra time it was too little, too late. The final whistle sounded and Liverpool, while losing 4–2, advanced on an aggregate score of 6–7 and would see Real Madrid in the Champions League Final.
Liverpool maintained control throughout the first half and Salah's curling effort in the 42nd minute gave Liverpool the lead. Liverpool continued to dominate but a dubious penalty decision against Lovren saw Wayne Rooney converted a penalty in the 77th to tie the game at 1–1 where it finished. Klopp said following the game about the controversial penalty incident, "In my understanding, it's not a penalty." The next game was yet another held at Anfield where Liverpool hosted West Brom on 13 December. The game was a 0–0 stalemate against West Brom at Anfield, with the most notable event being an 82nd minute Solanke goal was disallowed for a handball drawing conversation on whether or not the correct call was made.
In a record breaking performance, Liverpool thrashed Maribor 0–7 breaking the record for biggest away win not just in Liverpool history but by any English side in the European competition. Goals came from Firmino, Coutinho, Salah, another from Firmino, a second from Salah, the first of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain's Liverpool career, and a capper from Trent Alexander-Arnold. The Reds fell behind 2–0 quickly following defensive mistakes in which Lovren drew heavy criticism for. Salah drew Liverpool back one in the 24th, but Dele Alli chipped a goal in before the stroke of halftime.
On 14 January, Liverpool took on the undefeated Manchester City at Anfield in hopes of deal City their first loss in the league as well as a measure of revenge for the 0–5 loss the Reds were dealt in the reverse fixture. Liverpool started off strong with an Oxlade-Chamberlain goal in the ninth minute, but City scored an equalizer through in the 40th through a Leroy Sane effort. From the 59th to the 68th, Liverpool extended the lead to 4–1 through goals from Firmino, Mane, and Salah in a thrilling ten minutes of action. City got one back in the 84th from Bernardo Silva and another from İlkay Gündoğan in the 91st put it at 4–3, but the Reds held on and doled City their first loss of the league season. The next game for the Reds was a 22 January meeting in South Wales against Swansea and recently placed manager Carlos Carvalhal. Alfie Mawson scored the lone goal of the match in the 40th minute and the bottom place Swans took all three from the Reds with a 1–0 defeat given to the visitors.
Salah scored again in the 76th giving Liverpool a 2–1 victory and ensuring the Reds would end 2017 in the top four. Liverpool's first match of the month was a home bout on 3 March against Newcastle, as the Reds welcomed back manager Rafa Benítez, who won the 2005 Champions League with the club. Salah opened the scoring in the 40th minute and Mane put in another in the 55th to give the Reds a comfortable 2–0 victory over the Magpies. The Reds then played mid-week at home on 6 March against Porto in the return fixture of the Champions League round of 16. It was a quiet affair, Mane had a chance that hit the post and Danny Ings had a strong effort saved, but the game ended 0–0 and Liverpool moved on to the quarterfinals.
The 2017–18 season was Liverpool Football Club's 126th season in existence and their 56th consecutive season in the top flight of English football. Along with the Premier League, Liverpool also competed in the FA Cup, EFL Cup and UEFA Champions League. It began with an away 3–3 draw against Watford in the league and ended with a 3–1 loss to Real Madrid in the UEFA Champions League final. It takes inspiration from some of the kits worn by the Reds during their illustrious past with the v-neck white tipped collar a nod to the 1984 European Cup final triumph over Roma. Fans can purchase the strip now by heading to liverpoolfc.com/store or by visiting any official club store.
On 19 July, Liverpool played their first match of the 2017 Premier League Asia Trophy friendly tournament in Hong Kong against Crystal Palace. The Reds won 2–0 thanks to goals from another new signing, Dominic Solanke, and Divock Origi. The Reds advanced to the final, played on 22 July, the day after announcing new signing Andrew Robertson on a deal from Hull City, against Leicester City. Liverpool won the tournament defeating Leicester in the final 2–1, despite conceding first, due to goals from Salah and Philippe Coutinho. The kit can be pre-ordered now and will ship to fans on May 19, with the players wearing it for the first time in the final home game of the season against Middlesbrough on May 21.
In the final on the next day, Liverpool lost to Atlético Madrid, 1–1 (4–5 in penalties) with a Roberto Firmino spot kick pushing the game to penalties before ultimately losing. Kyiv's Olimpiyskiy National Sports Complex hosted the Champions League final on 26 May against the two-time defending champions in Madrid. Liverpool suffered an early blow as Salah sustained what Klopp later specified as a serious injury to "either the collarbone or the shoulder" after just 30 minutes of play. Regardless, the score was 0–0 at the half but in the 51st minute, Karim Benzema pounced on a Karius roll-out of the ball and ultimately get a foot to direct the ball net-bound and give Madrid the 1–0 lead.
No comments:
Post a Comment