Wednesday night was a strange one for Liverpool and their fans. It was a throwback to the Brendan Rodgers days of 2013/14. Jürgen Klopp’s side exhibited clinical attacking prowess and nonsensically sloppy defending. It was a fun little throwback. Red Bull Salzburg arrived at Anfield a side promising goals and they delivered. The Reds cruised into a 3-0 lead after 36 minutes but by the hour mark they were pegged back to 3-3. Mo Salah took just 9 minutes to restore Liverpool’s lead. The Austrian side didn’t give up though and on 86 minutes they were threatening another goal with a quick counter – enter stage left, Fabinho. Liverpool’s Brazilian defensive midfielder showed his class as he chopped down the onrushing Salzburg attacker, Fabinho was shown a yellow card as a result.
A hallmark of a great defensive player is knowing when to make a foul. When you have conceded a 3 goal lead, restored your lead and are facing a potentially devastating counter attack, that is when you need to commit a foul. The Reds were looking frail at the back and Salzburg were looking unstoppable at times when going forward, with them threatening to burst through once again with only 4 minutes remaining, we couldn’t afford to concede. Fabinho showed immense maturity and intelligence by bringing down the attacker.
The Brazilian is currently regarded by many as the best defensive midfielder in the world. Games like Wednesday’s tie with Red Bull Salzburg are testament to that.
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