Ralph Hasenhuttl has praised Liverpool after they demolished his Southampton side 4-0 at Anfield.
The first half-hour of the game was actually fairly even in overall play but Liverpool’s superior sharpshooting saw them motor into a 2-0 lead. Hasenhuttl later said: “They are a team on fire. It was unbelievable how well they played. They are one of the best teams in the world,” before adding: “they always had the feeling they could speed up the game”
Speeding up the game is exactly what they did 37 minutes in when Thiago Alcantara blasted the Reds into a 3-0 lead and all but ended Southampton’s resistence. That goal was the Spanish international’s second goal in as many matches as he looks to establish himself as a regular presence in the Liverpool midfield.
“It’s just about helping the team… It doesn’t matter if it’s passing, tackling or scoring,” Thiago said to beIN Sports; “For us, it’s important to win.” And today Thiago picked score as his contribution, although he did also make 2 tackles, 1 clearance and complete 46/53 passes.
But his goal, which admittedly was deflected, did what Hasenhuttl warned and sped the game up to the point where the Austrian’s Southampton side could not compete. It was his second Premier League goal for the Reds and the first one was also against Southampton. But on whether it was his goal or an own goal, Thiago said: “I think so, I don’t know what the ref says but it felt mine.”
Thiago has scored two Premier League goals for Liverpool:
⚽️ May 2021: Southampton (H)
⚽️ Nov 2021: Southampton (H)
His favourite opposition. ? pic.twitter.com/Oi59j8Dl1u
— Squawka (@Squawka) November 27, 2021
What was so impressive was how Liverpool sustained that tempo in the second-half, running roughshod over their opponents for the whole time (albeit they only scored once). Thiago’s summation was pretty accurate: “I think it was a pretty good first-half, and even better the second one.”
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