Given the participants, we shouldn’t count on it! Newcastle aren’t very good; Liverpool are very good; you already knew all of that. Perhaps, then, the way to look at this match — the way to convince yourself that what we’re about to see could conceivably be classified as “interesting” — is as a chance to show that what happened to Liverpool against West Brom was a blip rather than a burgeoning problem.
While Steve Bruce’s team isn’t objectively relegation-quality — only the fourth-worst expected-goal differential in the league, per Stats Perform — they’re the most passive team team in England not named “West Brom”. Only the Baggies take fewer shots, control less possession, and complete fewer passes into the penalty area, and no one presses less aggressively than than Magpies, who rank last in the league in PPDA. And only Tottenham — eek! — have a worse margin of final-third turnovers, or “possessions lost in the defensive third minus possessions won in the attacking third”. For the most part, you can expect teams that don’t have much of the ball anywhere on the field to at least counter-attack at speed, but Newcastle don’t really do that, either, as the pace of their average possession (meters per second the ball moves up the field) is roughly league-average. They’re barely doing anything, and it’s just enough to get by.
Liverpool, meanwhile, rank first in final-third turnover margin and in passes into the penalty area and in expected goals per match. Yet, they only generated a single-shot on target against West Brom over the weekend. Breaking down teams that don’t want to attack used to be a big problem for Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool; we’ll see if it still is today. Kick off is at 3 PM EST. See you soon.
-Shots (on target): Newcastle 8 (2), Liverpool 11 (4)
-xG: Newcastle 0.57, Liverpool 1.4
-Final-third passes: Newcastle 38, Liverpool 115
-Penalty-area passes: Newcastle 7, Liverpool 18
Crap first half, but Liverpool should've won. This and the WBA game were two games that Liverpool won last year -- with the exact kind of underlying performance. I guess I'd be a little concerned that they couldn't generate more shots today or more chances in either of the past two games, but everyone looks tired and the past two matches are two matches that typically produce wins. Weird season -- this is what title races were like 12 years ago: top teams drop points almost every week. Four dropped points in two games two seasons ago would've seemed like an absolute disaster. This year, it means Liverpool are probably still title favorites. Newcastle, on the other hand, defended well in the first half and showed some spice on the counter. Second half? More of a hang-on-for-dear-life kinda thing.
Metaphorical Hawaiian Ham Recipient: Karl Darlow. He's saved about 4.5 goals over average over the last two seasons, and the good form continued today. LFC's finishing was off, but the real KD was on his game tonight.
That ends our three-day run of chats ... and solidifies my ability to turn any matchup into the worst game you've ever seen. Thanks for all the fun and thoughtful commentary. I might've switched to table tennis had I watched this garbage alone. We'll do another one soon. Happy New Year to all. Shane Long is Howard Dean!
Just crushed a post-Christmas Ted Lasso binge and I really resonated with the show's message that there are only like six managers who have any sort of tactical influence on their team, and the rest of management just comes down to vibes. I think you put Lasso on Chelsea and they are pretty much in the same spot they are today
A sign that Newcastle's plan is working: 28 percent of Liverpool's final-third passes were crosses in the first half. Their season-long average is just 13 percent.
premiership joe flacco aka jordan henderson watching thiago pass the ball with his jaw on the floor like the first time we saw megan fox in transformers
Latest from the Premier League, per Rob Harris: "The Premier League has not discussed pausing the season and has no plans to do so. The League continues to have confidence in its COVID-19 protocols to enable fixtures to be played as scheduled, and these protocols continue to have the full backing of Government."
My dad thinks that soccer broadcasts need a new camera angle. He ... wants the camera to be closer to the players but also not zoomed in so that you see less of the field (?). Feasibility of that specific idea aside, what say you all?
Mourinho put a curse on the games you chose for discussion threads as soon as you initiated the honorary jamon iberico. All games we watch together are now Mourinho-ey.
a drunk newcastle supporter told me he voted for brexit while i was trying to watch LFC Sevilla at a pub in largo, portugal like 3 yrs ago...hated them ever since.
Thiago is the type of player that could make a difference when teams park the bus against Liverpool. When LFC break through, its when the defense is re-positioning themselves from let-to-right making room for players to get in behind
do we overrate the in game parts of managing like team selection, tactics, subs etc and underrate the other 90% of coaching like training, rest, film etc?
my wife instructed me to pick up a new years brisket at half so excuse me while i put on my lace outfit that perfectly matches my holiday decorations and go acquire some meats
what are there other examples of guys as mediocre phillips playing in starting 11s w/ as much talent as LFC...reminds me of mario chalmers on the big 3 heat
It would probably have to have been from a relatively lesser league (not coincidentally like Scotland), but are there any good, recent parallels for Rangers' level of league dominance this year?
Let's Chat Newcastle-Liverpool!
Me: midfielders aren't that valuable compared to other positions
Also me: [has a full back tattoo of Thiago]
Don't know about you guys but I'm now using these chats as a distraction from the awful soccer I'm supposed to be watching ...
Watching Nat Phillips try a 30-yard pass while Thiago is on the field is like watching, I don't know, a tree try to read the bible?
Nat Philipps is the Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania, fyi
Great to see Nat and Thiago out there together.
FT Stat Update:
-Shots (on target): Newcastle 8 (2), Liverpool 11 (4)
-xG: Newcastle 0.57, Liverpool 1.4
-Final-third passes: Newcastle 38, Liverpool 115
-Penalty-area passes: Newcastle 7, Liverpool 18
Crap first half, but Liverpool should've won. This and the WBA game were two games that Liverpool won last year -- with the exact kind of underlying performance. I guess I'd be a little concerned that they couldn't generate more shots today or more chances in either of the past two games, but everyone looks tired and the past two matches are two matches that typically produce wins. Weird season -- this is what title races were like 12 years ago: top teams drop points almost every week. Four dropped points in two games two seasons ago would've seemed like an absolute disaster. This year, it means Liverpool are probably still title favorites. Newcastle, on the other hand, defended well in the first half and showed some spice on the counter. Second half? More of a hang-on-for-dear-life kinda thing.
Metaphorical Hawaiian Ham Recipient: Karl Darlow. He's saved about 4.5 goals over average over the last two seasons, and the good form continued today. LFC's finishing was off, but the real KD was on his game tonight.
That ends our three-day run of chats ... and solidifies my ability to turn any matchup into the worst game you've ever seen. Thanks for all the fun and thoughtful commentary. I might've switched to table tennis had I watched this garbage alone. We'll do another one soon. Happy New Year to all. Shane Long is Howard Dean!
Klopp made three subs before injury time. Wow.
Need a pundit to say Liverpool only won the title due to Covid to spice this up a little.
Thiago time!?!
Steve Bruce is Mike Pence
Just crushed a post-Christmas Ted Lasso binge and I really resonated with the show's message that there are only like six managers who have any sort of tactical influence on their team, and the rest of management just comes down to vibes. I think you put Lasso on Chelsea and they are pretty much in the same spot they are today
USNMT abroad yedlin earns a foul in the attacking half send tweet
A sign that Newcastle's plan is working: 28 percent of Liverpool's final-third passes were crosses in the first half. Their season-long average is just 13 percent.
HT Stat Update:
-Shots (on target): Newcastle 6 (1), Liverpool 4 (3)
-xG, per Stats Perform: Newcastle 0.49, Liverpool 0.50
-Final-third passes: Newcastle 26, Liverpool 48
-Penalty-area passes: Newcastle 6, Liverpool 10
Moral of the first half: Newcastle are outshooting Liverpool.
More conversation about meat bought for Reguilon by Mourinho: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.thesun.co.uk/sport/football/13604048/sergio-reguilon-mourinho-pig-christmas/amp/
My infant son loves screens and always watches tv when it’s on. He turned away from this game 15 mins ago
ass cheek out alert
premiership joe flacco aka jordan henderson watching thiago pass the ball with his jaw on the floor like the first time we saw megan fox in transformers
need thiago to come on and reinvigorate chat
does match quality matter when the only viewing alternative is the duke's mayo bowl?
Why no Rebecca Lowe? Thing 1 and Thing 2 male presenters just highlight how much better she is.
Latest from the Premier League, per Rob Harris: "The Premier League has not discussed pausing the season and has no plans to do so. The League continues to have confidence in its COVID-19 protocols to enable fixtures to be played as scheduled, and these protocols continue to have the full backing of Government."
Nat Philips showing us why he's, uh, Nat Phillips there.
My dad thinks that soccer broadcasts need a new camera angle. He ... wants the camera to be closer to the players but also not zoomed in so that you see less of the field (?). Feasibility of that specific idea aside, what say you all?
Salah with a forgettable game. Is Jota's injury more difficult to overcome than van Dijk's?
That casual cross field diagonal from Thiago literally made me call out with pleasure
"when the lamb is lost in the mountains, they cry. sometime come the mother, sometime come thiago"
Remember when Liverpool couldn't miss against Palace? Good times.
Mourinho put a curse on the games you chose for discussion threads as soon as you initiated the honorary jamon iberico. All games we watch together are now Mourinho-ey.
Mane's first touch is always incredible. always able to use it to turn or move the ball forward. never static.
Yedlin was 5 years too late. Promising American right backs are the new English midfielders these days.
a drunk newcastle supporter told me he voted for brexit while i was trying to watch LFC Sevilla at a pub in largo, portugal like 3 yrs ago...hated them ever since.
Ryan: any ideas on how to monetize your position as the cooler for games?
City being 7 points back with two games in hand has the feeling of inevitability
Is there anything Henderson likes more than giving instructions after making a sideways pass?
shaqiri hair trainsplant looking primo
Thiago is the type of player that could make a difference when teams park the bus against Liverpool. When LFC break through, its when the defense is re-positioning themselves from let-to-right making room for players to get in behind
do we overrate the in game parts of managing like team selection, tactics, subs etc and underrate the other 90% of coaching like training, rest, film etc?
What's the earliest Klopp has made a non-injury sub this season?
Does Thiago liven up this game? Does Zidane? How about Joan of Arc?
my wife instructed me to pick up a new years brisket at half so excuse me while i put on my lace outfit that perfectly matches my holiday decorations and go acquire some meats
It seems that starting attacks with Nat Phillips is suboptimal...
Did Mo have any idea he was onside?
Karl Darrow is a good enough keeper to have a big team pick him up as a backup. That might be the nicest thing I can say about newcastle’s team
what are there other examples of guys as mediocre phillips playing in starting 11s w/ as much talent as LFC...reminds me of mario chalmers on the big 3 heat
Was that... a shot? 🥲
Thiago on the bench! I've only missed a few Liverpool games this season, but haven't seen him play yet.
It would probably have to have been from a relatively lesser league (not coincidentally like Scotland), but are there any good, recent parallels for Rangers' level of league dominance this year?
What team would be worst to win the league for neutrals? My ranking is:
- Man United
- Chelsea
- Spurs (my team, but this is my guess)
- Liverpool
- Man City
- Leicester
- Everton
- Villa
- Southampton
As soon as I saw that Newcastle players man bun I knew they couldn't lose