Following their 1-0 victory against Stoke City, Liverpool now had to take on a determined Aston Villa side at Villa Park. The Reds got the job done with another 1-0 win. Here are the Talking Points from the game:- 1: Who needs Suarez when you’ve got Sturridge – The former Chelsea striker has 7 goals in 6 games in the absence of the suspended Suarez. Sturridge has clearly repaid his manager’s faith in him by scoring 2 match winning goals in 2 games this season. His finish today clearly showed his self-confidence and also his calmness and composure in front of goal. The England International also put in a defensive shift later in the second half when Villa threw the kitchen sink at them – at one point Sturridge was spotted making clearances from a right-back position. 2: Liverpool are in safe hands – Simon Mignolet, the Summer signing from Sunderland has already helped Liverpool earn 4 points with his penalty save against Stoke and made a magnificent save today from a late Beneteke effort. He might take time adjusting to Rodger’s way of playing the ball from the back but his shot stopping abilities are second to none. 3: Credit to the owners – Brendon Rodger’s may have had a tough start last season where he couldn’t buy himself a win but the owners stuck with him and now are reaping the rewards. Liverpool are now playing with a neat passing style that has won them plenty of admirers. In the first half against Villa they completed a total of 339 passes which was more than what 17 other teams in the Premier League had in the full 90 mins this season. 4: Welcome back Lucas – The Brazilian was clearly missed last season and Rodger’s never really had a settled center midfield. Today Lucas was clearly back to his best today and was instrumental in Liverpool’s first half domination. He completed 54 of his 57 passes with an accuracy of 95%. He won all 3 of his tackles, won back possession 4 times and made 2 vital interceptions. He added the much needed steel and defensive solidity to the Liverpool midfield and complemented Steven Gerrard. 5: This maybe Liverpool’s year – 2 wins in 2 games, the last time Liverpool achieved this stat they came second in the League in 2008/09 and gave Manchester United a run for their money. With 2 one-nil victories already under their belt they have given fans a renewed sense of optimism this season. With the club carrying out its transfer business without any noise and no Europa League distractions, fans may well and truly believe that their club can stake claim to a Champions League spot or maybe even go a step further and be genuine title contenders. -MV
Posted on: Sat, 24 Aug 2013 19:15:15 +0000
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