1 week ago
29 Gary Neville has admitted he was ‘really surprised’ after watching one Liverpool player at Everton last night.
Liverpool suffered a huge blow in the title race on Wednesday evening after falling to a 2-0 defeat at Goodison Park.
Jurgen Klopp’s side overcame a tricky test at Fulham over the weekend but picked the wrong time to fall short in the Merseyside Derby.
Goals from Jarrad Branthwaite and Dominic Calvert-Lewin secured Everton’s first win over Liverpool at Goodison since 2010.
Both goals were avoidable, to say the least, with the Reds conceding from a corner in the second half after creating plenty of chances.
Branthwaite’s opener was slightly unfortunate for Liverpool as the ball fell kindly to the Everton man in the box after Ibrahima Konate failed to clear the ball.
But it was a familiar story for Klopp’s men as they failed to take their opportunities and were punished at the other end of the pitch.
Neville ‘surprised’ by Ibrahima Konate display
Speaking on the latest episode of his podcast, Neville reflected on last night’s Merseyside Derby.
The Manchester United legend feels Liverpool were ‘outmuscled’ on both boxes and highlighted Ibrahima Konate’s performance.
“There was an element of this game where you felt Liverpool were outmuscled,” Neville said. “I wouldn’t say outfought because Liverpool teams work hard but they were outmuscled by Everton in the big moments in both boxes.”
“Liverpool lost the game in both boxes, which is where you lose the game, but physically they lost the game in both boxes,” he added.
“That was surprising. I was really surprised that Konate, who I thought was the right pick alongside Van Dijk, he just got pushed around and nudged and ruffled.
“I didn’t expect that. I just expected them to be really powerful and dominant in those areas.”
Konate’s stats vs Everton
It was a hugely disappointing evening for Liverpool and they are now relying on both Arsenal and Manchester City dropping points.
They certainly had the required chances to win the game, with Mohamed Salah, Luis Diaz and Darwin Nunez proving to be wasteful in front of goal.
But Konate didn’t enjoy his best game at a crucial time for Liverpool and the £35 million defender also received criticism from Jamie Carragher after Everton’s opener.
The numbers reflect what was a disappointing evening for the Frenchman, with Sofascore handing him the lowest rating of any Liverpool player.
6.0 match rating 1 clearance 2 tackles 1 error leading to a goal 2/3 ground duels won 4/6 aerial duels won 67/72 passes completed 6 possession lostThe post ‘Really surprised’: Gary Neville shocked after what happened to £35m Liverpool player at Everton appeared first on TBR Football.
