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‘It’s exceptional’: Liverpool sink Blades to make it a year unbeaten
LIVERPOOL, Jan 3, 2020 (BSS/AFP) – Jurgen Klopp hailed “exceptional”
Liverpool after they made it an entire calendar year without a Premier League
defeat as the runaway leaders beat Sheffield United 2-0 on Thursday.
Klopp’s side moved 13 points clear of second placed Leicester thanks to
goals from Egypt forward Mohamed Salah and Senegal winger Sadio Mane at
Anfield.
Liverpool’s 19th win in 20 league games this season completed an
incredible 12 months for a team at the peak of their powers.
The Reds haven’t lost in 37 league games since a defeat at Manchester City
on January 3, 2019 and it looks certain they will win the English title for
the first time since 1990.
With a game in hand to further bolster their advantage, it would take an
astonishing collapse to deprive Liverpool of their holy grail.
“It says a lot of positive things. I have not enough words for it, it is
exceptional,” Klopp said.
“I’m really happy and really proud of the boys. We should not take things
like this for granted.”
Winners of their last 18 home league games, Liverpool are unbeaten in 51
top-flight matches at Anfield dating back to April 2017.
As if it wasn’t hard enough to beat Liverpool already, they are proving
more impregnable than ever lately.
This was their fifth consecutive top-flight clean-sheet — the first time
they have managed that since 2007 — and they completed more passes than any
team in one match in the Premier League era.
“The way we controlled Sheffield United was exceptional. In possession we
were incredible, we were calm but lively as well. The goals we scored were
exceptional,” Klopp said.
“It’s obviously good (to go unbeaten for a year) but the target was not to
extend this, but to win the game.
“We did not think about the one year (undefeated). We have season
resolutions, not New Year resolutions!”
After a golden 2019 saw Liverpool crowned European and Club World
champions, the next target is ending Manchester City’s two-year spell as
champions after narrowly missing out last season.
Their sights set on domestic bliss, the new year started just as the old
one finished, with Liverpool setting standards of excellence that rival
anything achieved by City’s breath-taking team.
Premier League immortality is within touching distance as Klopp’s men are
already over halfway towards an unbeaten league season that would replicate
the incredible feat of Arsenal’s 2003-04 Invincibles.
Liverpool hadn’t even kicked off when they suffered what could have been a
distracting blow as Naby Keita was replaced by James Milner after being
injured in the warm-up.
But the Reds are far too polished to lose focus and they were in front
within four minutes.
– Flushed with success –
Their win at Bramall Lane in September had come thanks to a mistake from
United keeper Dean Henderson and once again Liverpool benefitted from a
Blades blunder.
When Virgil van Dijk played a long pass towards Andrew Robertson, it
should have been easy for George Baldock to deal with.
But Baldock lost his footing and fell over, allowing Robertson to advance
and cross low to Salah, who got in front of Jack O’Connell to steer in a
clinical close-range finish for his 14th goal of the season.
Ahead of their first visit to Anfield for 13 year, Chris Wilder’s down-to-
earth side took the unusual decision to train alongside the public on Stanley
Park in the shadow of the famous stadium.
The session was interrupted when a dog decided to use one of the training
cones as a toilet.
That unpromising omen proved apt as the visitors’ hopes of a shock result
were flushed away.
Liverpool’s ability to press any opponent into submission and deliver the
knockout blow with their lethal front three has made them virtually
unplayable over the last 18 months.
United were the latest victims as Mane wrapped up the points in the 64th
minute.
Running onto Robertson’s pass, Mane broke into the area and took Salah’s
return pass before firing gleefully into the roof of the net after his
initial shot was saved.
BSS/AFP/BZC/1330HRS