Salah Shines but Liverpool’s Wastefulness Proves Costly at Villa Park | OneFootball

Liverpool’s Missed Opportunity at Villa Park: A Deep Dive into the 2-2 Draw

Liverpool’s recent clash with Aston Villa ended in frustration as Arne Slot’s side failed to convert their dominance into three points. In the latest Stat Me Up podcast for Anfield Index, Dave Davis and Dr Phil Barter dissected the game in forensic detail, highlighting missed chances, tactical adjustments, and concerning trends in Liverpool’s defensive metrics.

A Game of Three Phases

Davis broke down Liverpool’s performance into three distinct periods. “The first third, we are battering Villa,” he noted, describing a Liverpool side that looked sharp and dominant. The Reds raced ahead with an early goal, and the expectation was that they would push on to a convincing win. However, a shift in momentum saw Villa equalise and then take a shock 2-1 lead before half-time.

“The legs just die, we just seem to stop playing,” Davis lamented, pointing to a worrying trend where Liverpool’s intensity fades at key moments. The second half saw a resurgence, but despite piling on pressure, they couldn’t find the winner. “You leave that game going, how the hell have we not scored another goal?” Davis asked, a sentiment echoed by many Liverpool fans.

Dominance in Numbers, Failure in Execution

From a statistical standpoint, Liverpool should have won the match comfortably. Barter laid out the stark reality: “We out-shot them 17 to 9, with 14 of those coming inside the penalty box. That’s not even the same game. That’s us having three times the amount of shots in their box.” Liverpool also generated nearly 2.5 xG (expected goals) compared to Villa’s 0.73, yet the game ended in a draw.

Big chances went begging, particularly from Darwin Nunez and Diogo Jota. “Jota misses a massive chance before half-time to make it 2-2,” Barter pointed out, before highlighting another crucial miss in the second half: “We could have had two, three other chances… Jota has a half-chance, Mo does, Trent scores a lovely goal, and we have headers that we should have scored from.”

The Nunez Conundrum

Darwin Núñez’s performance was another major talking point. Liverpool’s number nine had three major opportunities to change the game but failed to capitalise. “The boy misses an open goal, should take a touch before the keeper gets there, and then on the third one, he dithers on the edge of the box and ends up playing a stupid pass,” Barter explained, clearly unimpressed.

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To make matters worse, Núñez’s off-the-ball work left much to be desired. “He doesn’t work hard off the ball,” Barter added, noting how this affected Liverpool’s pressing structure. With Arne Slot’s system heavily reliant on high-energy forwards, the Uruguayan’s inconsistency remains a concern.

Defensive Frailties Exposed

While much of the focus was on missed chances, Liverpool’s defensive issues were equally problematic. Barter highlighted a dip in defensive duel success rates, particularly in midfield: “Our six is clocking a duel rate at 17.7% win rate. That’s a bit of a concern for me.” Even Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konaté were below their usual standards, with the latter winning only 50% of his duels.

The goals Liverpool conceded were also frustrating. “The first one is a third-phase set-piece – one of those where crap happens,” Barter admitted, while the second was even more controversial. “It’s handball! I don’t even know how it didn’t get ruled out. There’s no way that didn’t impact the resulting move.”

Salah: Carrying Liverpool on His Shoulders?

One shining light for Liverpool, as always, was Mohamed Salah. “There was only one man of the match,” Davis said. “We’ve almost become immune to an Egyptian demigod getting a goal and assist practically every game.” Salah was Liverpool’s standout performer once again, but his reliance to dig the team out of trouble is becoming a familiar narrative.

Barter reinforced the point: “Mo, yet again, goal and assist. Unlucky not to have another goal or another assist at least. A great performance from him.” The concern, however, is how long Liverpool can keep expecting their talisman to deliver when others fail to step up.

Moving Forward: City and Newcastle Await

With Manchester City and Newcastle up next, the importance of squad management is crucial. “You cannot afford to blow Trent and Jota’s minutes against City because we need them for Newcastle,” Barter stressed.

Liverpool’s upcoming fixtures could define their season, and while they remain in a strong position, their recent drop-off in intensity is a worrying sign. As Barter put it, “We really need to find a way of getting back to the intensity we had off the ball”

One thing is clear: Liverpool cannot afford to be as wasteful again. Otherwise, their title challenge may slip away just as it did at Villa Park.