Late to set-piece party, Liverpool are making up for lost time

If you can’t beat them, join them. liverpool were slow to connect with Premier Leagueset-piece revolution, but their willingness to adopt an increasingly agricultural approach to the game has played a key role in their recent opposition, including on Saturday win 5-2 Above west ham united At Anfield.

When? alexis mac allister By scoring the hosts’ third goal of the afternoon in front of the Kop, he ensured Liverpool became only the second team in Premier League history to score three goals from corners in the first half of a match. Manchester United Against Leicester City in September 2016. It’s the kind of statistic that would have seemed absurd in the early months of the campaign, when the Reds’ lack of efficiency in scoring and defending set pieces negatively impacted their fortunes on an almost weekly basis.

Liverpool’s problems in that department were so obvious that the club chose Part company with set-piece coach Aaron Briggs in December – although manager Arne Slot publicly defended his former colleague when questioned on the matter the previous week.

Slott said, “It would be very unfair to Aaron to be only partially responsible for this, because in the end I’m responsible for everything.” “In the end it’s always my responsibility. But we were very unlucky at that time.”

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The evidence from the first half of Saturday suggests that fortunes have now begun to change. Liverpool, who have consistently made slow starts in the top flight this season, took an early lead Ryan Gravenberch Recycled and pulled out the hinges from a corner hugo akitikewho deftly eliminated the past mads hermansen At the near post.

It was Ekitike’s 11th league goal of the season and his 16th in all competitions, taking him top scorer. France The first Liverpool player to reach 20 goal contributions in this period at international level, he also has four assists to his name. West Ham, who had lost only one of their last six league games before this weekend’s trip to Merseyside, were well-coordinated after the early shock but found themselves on the receiving end of more set-piece misery. virgil van dijk The tallest got up to nod Dominic SzoboszlaiIf there is an in-swinging corner at the back of the net.

Liverpool took the same route to score again on the stroke of halftime, with Akitike assisting Szoboszlai’s smart delivery into the path of Mac Allister, who finished confidently to double his Premier League goals for the season.

His strike was Liverpool’s seventh consecutive league goal from a non-penalty set piece – the longest goal scored by any side in the history of the competition. While Slote was right to say that his team’s huge surge in set-piece form should not be blamed on any one individual, the contradiction in Liverpool’s numbers is glaring.

In their first 20 Premier League matches this season, Liverpool have scored only three goals from set pieces – the fewest of any team in the division. However, their effectiveness from corners on Saturday means they have scored nine set-piece goals in their last eight league games: more than any of their rivals.

“It’s very pleasant because that’s why we won,” Slot said in the post-match press conference. “In my opinion, we have played better when we have conceded and lost from set pieces. But, as I always say, things got back to normal.

“We created a lot of chances from set pieces in the first half of the season and almost every set piece we conceded went in, and today you could see exactly the opposite happening. Their first big chance was a set piece that would have gone in in the first six or seven months, I’m 100% sure. But then it doesn’t happen and we start scoring from set pieces, things start to look a lot better and brighter. It’s really pleasing for us, for the team and for the fans too.”

In a season that has been characterized by late drama, Liverpool deviated from the norm by scoring three goals in the first half of a league game, the first since the day they won the title. Tottenham Hotspur last April. Nevertheless, the Reds’ unwanted habit of making their lives difficult once again reared its head in the second half, Tomas Soucek entertaining el hadji malik dioufDrilled cross past of Alison Baker Just four minutes after restart.

With nothing to lose, West Ham caused plenty of problems for their hosts early on kodi gakpoThe deflected effort helped calm some of the concerns around Anfield. it was only Netherlands The international’s second goal in the league followed his strike in the reverse fixture at the London Stadium in late November, and his emotional celebration suggested it was a welcome relief to find himself back on the scoresheet.

late header valentine castellanos And even later an own goal axel disassi That only heightened the erratic nature of Liverpool’s second-half performance, and Slott will know his team need more control and composure if they are to finish the season stronger than they started.

Nevertheless, Liverpool have now won seven of their last nine games in all competitions and are fifth in the Premier League, just three points behind third place. Aston Villa. They remain undeniably an imperfect team, and even in achieving their joint-highest top-flight win of the season, they showed there is still plenty of room for improvement.

But having been late to the set-piece party, Liverpool are now determined to make up for lost time. This just might be the secret weapon they need to make this mission a success.