Liverpool maintained a perfect record at the top of the Champions League as Arne Slot‘s big decisions were justified in a 1-0 win over Girona.
Girona 0-1 Liverpool
Champions League (6) | Estadi Montilivi
December 10, 2024
Goals: Salah (pen) 63′
1. Slot’s strong lineup justified
There were calls for Slot to rotate his team for this midweek Champions League game, but his approach was proven the best one and it fully paid off.
Having not had to play Everton at the weekend, there was less reason to rotate, and if anything it made sense to keep his key starters in action.
Even though Harvey Elliott didn’t replace Mohamed Salah in this game, the Englishman returning from injury gives Slot the option to rotate Salah in the future.
There have been injury issues in key positions in this early part of the season and the Reds boss has found a way to work through them.
Players returning in attacking positions will give him more options if the others can stay fit during a busy Christmas and New Year period.
Liverpool’s perfect record in this Champions League league stage to date almost guarantees them a place in the round of 16.
This will give them a matchday off later in the tournament, and allow for rotation in the remaining group games. With this in mind, Slot’s strong lineup made perfect sense.
2. Gravenberch’s confidence continues to shine
The first chance of the game fell to Darwin Nunez – who remains frustratingly inaccurate – following a brilliant piece of play from Ryan Gravenberch in midfield.
It’s become a familiar sight this season, but this was a particularly outstanding example of it.
He makes it look easy as he receives the ball and breezes past his man, receiving the ball across his body and turning forward into space, but it’s not an easy skill under pressure.
It requires pressure to be executed in the first place, so it needs confidence as well as skill.
That he even has a signature move in this Liverpool team shows a turn in fortunes under Slot where he has become a key part of the team.
The Dutchman finished the game in Girona having completed 54/57 passes for a success rate of 95 percent – only Virgil van Dijk finished with a better record, as per FotMob.
3. Alisson helps weather the storm
Liverpool’s weekend game against Everton was called off due to dangerous winds and inclement weather, but they had to weather another storm at the start of this game.
Girona had the better chances in the opening stages, with Alejandro Frances and Bryan Gil testing Alisson.
The hosts played with confidence and were perhaps unlucky not to make something of one of those early chances. It was certainly a wake-up call for the Liverpool defence.
It was almost like the Liverpool players were giving Alisson some early action in his first game back from injury, helping him get back in the swing of things.
But the Brazilian showed no signs of needing to blow off the cobwebs after 11 games out, showcasing exactly why Slot has been insistent he would come straight back in when fully fit.
As has been the case so many times this season, the Reds came through this rough period and emerged out of the other side victorious.
4. Girona the best City Football team?
Liverpool have now faced two City Football Group-owned teams in the space of three games, and there’s a case to say that Girona were the best of them.
Slot’s side dispatched Man City with relative ease, and the scoreline could have been much more than 2-0, but Girona put up plenty of resistance and also had chances of their own.
Per FotMob, Liverpool racked up an xG of 3.57 in their game against City a couple of weeks ago, which is an impressive number even without the xG from the penalty added.
Against Girona, it was only 1.89, again including a penalty to provide a more accurate comparison.
Though the penalty was well won by Luis Diaz, Liverpool certainly needed the spot kick to win the game.
Man City will undoubtedly undergo some kind of resurgence in the Premier League this season, but that one of the teams below City in the CFG pecking order can appear more impressive shows the struggles experienced by Liverpool’s competitive rivals this season.
5. Defence remains solid, surprisingly?
It doesn’t always feel like it’s the case when watching Liverpool, but there is something about this team that has led to one of the most solid defensive records on the continent.
The midfield sometimes seems defensively suspect and there has been the occasional moment in the back four, but the team are still preventing goals.
They have only conceded once in the Champions League so far this season — the goal scored by Christian Pulisic three minutes into the first game away in Milan — and also have the best defensive record in the Premier League with only 11 goals conceded.
Van Dijk has been the regular presence throughout all this, reinforcing his status as one of the best defenders, and the best players, in Europe at the moment.
Aside from the captain, though, there have been injuries across the back four and goalkeeper at various points this season, and it makes the team’s defensive effort all the more evident.
One foot into the last 16 and now to press ahead in the league on Saturday.
Girona 0-1 Liverpool
