by Alexis McAllister has an assist to his name in the World Cup final. Should he add a foothold in the Premier League to the most valuable of all, Liverpool will have even more reason to be grateful for his assistance. When Sheffield United looked set to hand Liverpool their worst result of the season at Anfield, McAllister proved otherwise.
In a game where the first two goals bounced in from different body parts, not remotely on purpose, it was his best strike.
The man Jurgen Klopp tried to nickname was “Gary” by his nickname. Twenty-three years ago, Liverpool secured a treble thanks to the catalytic influence of Gary McAllister in the opening period. Now, with Liverpool looking for another three goals, the Celtic-born Argentine has scored, assisted or both in each of Liverpool’s last six games. His most recent intervention was even earlier on target for McAllister, another technically gifted midfielder.
A stunning shot rose and rifled into the top corner from the edge of the box as the club restored parity after a nervous 18 minutes. It could have been part of a long-range treble: Mac Allister was inches from scoring with a 20-yard shot in the first half and went on to rattle the bar from a free-kick from 25.
It was a great illustration of pure ball hitting. It came on a day when, with Wataru Endo missing, he had to reprise his role as the defensive midfielder. Instead it was a very big attack – and a very effective one at that.
There was a theory that this was a night to strengthen Liverpool’s goal difference. Instead, it ended in relief that they had an advantage at the top of the table: two points clear after two goals in the latest dramatic finish at Anfield. The winner came in the 90th minute from a combination of two substitutes, Cody Gakpo heading in from the edge of the box after a deep cross from Andy Robertson.
The Scotland captain was excellent in his half hour on the pitch. He made a double change when Klopp took Mohamed Salah off, but got to protect him from a manager whose changes have had a big impact this season.
So it was another occasion when Liverpool showed their powers of recovery. This time the kings of the comeback led, only to be pegged back. In another way, they conjured an answer.
They led in an uncommon style.
If Darwin Nunez has spent much of his career suggesting he could lose with any part of his anatomy, he scored with his thigh instead. However, an impressive goal was proof of the hard work that drives Klopp. A very nice finish courtesy of Ivo Grbic when Nunez cut down the goalkeeper’s clearance, got out of the way and went past the keeper into the empty net.
And yet United’s leveler also had a flukeish element. Gustavo Hamer bought James McAtee’s deep cross and hit Conor Bradley unawares on the ankle against the wrong foot of Kevin Kelleher. However, United previously had a counter-attacking threat and, in Ben Brereton Diaz, a lively striker.
They could have won first with McAtee missing after 30 seconds; instead the City loanee had to serve his parent association later, with Hamer’s assistance. Would Liverpool shoot themselves in the foot because of Bradley’s ankle? Ultimately not.
With Liverpool looking for a winner, Grbic grabbed Virgil van Dijk’s header. Robertson volleyed just wide. The pressure became relentless. But applying pressure is one of Liverpool’s strengths. Their display was disjointed at times, frantic and full of shots, but the effort was not relentless. Ryan Gravenberch barely impressed on his first start since the Carabao Cup final. Salah almost scored with a brace early on and Grbic’s rebound went wide. Once again, Joe Gomez scored the first final goal of his career.
Some of the finishing was imprecise but Liverpool forced United to press and registered 83 per cent of possession. Meanwhile, Klopp has been successful.
Robertson and Harvey Elliott came first, then Gakpo and another man Curtis Jones. Liverpool finished with 29 shots and took their tally to 78 goals in 25 home games this season. The manager’s night ended with fist pumps in front of the Kop.
So next up is Manchester United, another game where Liverpool could live on their nerves, another test of their ability to win anywhere, anyway. They have eight games to go in the title race, eight games to say goodbye to Klopp. Pep Guardiola announced the favourites. And if that was an attempt to apply pressure, maybe it was just an indication of the difference MacAllister is making. A player who plans to have a museum at home for his medals may need a section to celebrate his Premiership efforts.
