Liverpool put in an abject performance against Newcastle on Sunday evening.
Indeed, for one reason or another, the Premier League leaders simply didn’t turn up in the Carabao Cup final.
Mohamed Salah was poor against Newcastle at the weekend, while a number of other players weren’t at their best either.
Speaking on the Official Liverpool Podcast, Robbie Fowler has been reviewing this game.
The pundit says that this was a very disappointing showing from Liverpool, claiming that there’s only one player who can hold their head up high after this match – Virgil van Dijk.
- READ MORE: How Virgil van Dijk feels about his future at Liverpool after losing the Carabao Cup final
Virgil van Dijk can hold his head up after Newcastle game
According to Robbie Fowler, Virgil van Dijk is the only player who can be proud of his performance vs Newcastle.
Van Dijk was tipped to struggle against Newcastle on Sunday, but he put in a strong showing.
Van Dijk was incredible in the Carabao Cup final last year, and while he put in another great performance here, he couldn’t replicate the same result in winning a trophy.
“The only disappointing thing about it was… The result is disappointing, but I think it’s the performance which is probably ruinous a little bit. I’m not sure any player, other than probably Virgil van Dijk, can probably hold their head up,” Fowler said.
“It was a performance lacking in a little bit of everything, a little bit of great desire, you know, that control of football, you know, in certain areas of the pitch. And you’ve got to say, I think you summed it up really well there, when he just said they probably deserved it. You know, that’s probably the disappointing thing is, we’ve come to a final and we’re here talking about the opposition who deserved to win the game.”
Virgil van Dijk stats vs Newcastle
Fowler says that Van Dijk can hold his head up after this performance, and the stats show that the Dutchman was solid on the day.
Liverpool had to play with their backs against the wall for most of this match, and it was Van Dijk who had to alleviate that pressure most of the time.
The Dutchman made no fewer than nine clearances on the day, halting a number of threatening Newcastle attacks.
| Virgil van Dijk stats vs Newcastle | |
|---|---|
| Tackles | 0 |
| Interceptions | 2 |
| Clearances | 9 |
| Long balls | 9 |
Of course, in an ideal world, Van Dijk wouldn’t have to clear the ball so often and he’d be able to play out from the back, but the intensity of Newcastle’s pressure made that impossible.
Sometimes, you do just have to get the ball to safety, and that’s exactly what Van Dijk did at the weekend.
Unfortunately, his attacking counter-parts couldn’t hold up their end of the bargain as numerous players underperformed on the day.
Liverpool are still in the box seat to win the Premier League title, but their League Cup failure was a bitter disappointment after their Champions League exit vs PSG.
