Last year, Liverpool’s offence excelled when they could break into open space at speed. The tendency to sit deep and attack immediately off of turnovers, combined with the constant threat of Luis Suarez, consistently created space for the likes of Raheem Sterling, Phillippe Coutinho, and Daniel Sturridge to exploit.
This year, opponents will be aware of this danger and thus leave less space behind them. Combine that with the departure of Suarez, and Liverpool need a tactical rethink. In this area Brendan Rodgers has shown himself to be both flexible and creative.
In their first competitive game against Southampton, Liverpool attempted to manufacture the kind of space that they previously thrived in. Set up in a nominal 4-5-1, Liverpool often pressed aggressively and looked to strike quickly and directly off turnovers. Their first goal came this way, when Jordan Henderson won the ball near midfield and immediately played a perfect through ball to Raheem Sterling, who finished neatly with his first touch.
More interesting, though, were the times the Reds looked dangerous from longer spells of possession. The fullbacks pushed high up the pitch to provide width, the center backs spread out, and Steven Gerrard and Lucas Leiva shared the responsibility of dropping deep to pick up the ball. Possession was often circulated at the back before someone, most often Gerrard or Dejan Lovren, would make a vertical pass looking to break the first line of Southampton pressure.
Liverpool then looked to get the ball into one of the outer thirds, where two or three teammates would then move close to create a triangle or a diamond of short passing options. The goal here was to draw the Southampton players into the tight area as well, thereby creating open spaces in the attacking third. Sure enough, Liverpool often played one short pass out of pressure before looking to spring a teammate into the open with a diagonal ball.
The movement was almost amoeba-like: Liverpool would gain possession, expand wide, contract around an attacking player, and then look to attack the space that resulted. It was a creative way to utilize the skills and speed of this group of players. It did, however, provide Southampton players with more room than they could have reasonably expected in possession. Dusan Tadic in particular often found himself in good areas without immediate pressure.
It will be interesting to watch how Rodgers continues to evolve his tactics as the season progresses. How many different formations will we see, and how vulnerable will Liverpool remain on the back side of them?
Crooked Left 