Anzhi vs. Liverpool: 6 Things We Learned in Reds' Europa League Defeat

Liverpool suffered their second group stage defeat in the Europa League against Anzhi Makhachkala as they fell to a 1-0 defeat.
Brendan Rodgers fielded a very young side over in Russia and a change in formation to help them stem the expected tide of Anzhi attacks and domination of the match, but instead it was actually the Reds who had the majority of control of the game.
Despite this, Anzhi scored the only goal of the match just a few seconds before half time, with Lacina Traore lifting the ball over first Seb Coates and then Brad Jones, for an excellent individual strike.
Here are six things we learned from the game.

Liverpool Look Solid Playing with a Back Three

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A big part of Rodgers' switch was to start a game with three central defenders, with Jon Flanagan and Stewart Downing acting as wing-backs.
Liverpool looked very comfortable for much of the match with three defenders at the back, with Andre Wisdom and Jamie Carragher occupying the channels either side of Seb Coates.
It aided the team in retaining possession because it offered a quick, easy route for the midfielders to turn back whenever they were pressed high up the pitch, and both Wisdom and Carragher were comfortable stepping into the midfield line when necessary.
It was a momentary lapse of concentration in defence from Coates which cost Liverpool the game in the end, but until the last minutes as the Reds chased an equaliser they remained comfortable in dealing with most of the threats Anzhi threw at them.
Three at the back, whether with five or four in midfield, remains a good option for the future for Liverpool.

Toothless in Attack Without Suarez

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As expected, Liverpool left several first team players behind in England with an important and difficult Premier League match against Chelsea on the horizon.
One of those players was Luis Suarez, the Reds' top scorer for this season and biggest threat by far in the final third.
Adam Morgan got his chance to start up front through the centre, supported by Joe Cole.
The Reds did well in possession and made a few interesting-looking chances on goal, notably in the first half when Henderson had a chance to shoot inside the box, but by and large there was a lack of spark, nobody to help hold the ball up near the Anzhi box and very little indication that Liverpool would actually score.
Suarez remains the only Liverpool player to have scored a goal since the Anfield game against the same opposition.

Ohh!! Young bloods to play against Udinese

Andre Wisdom

Andre Wisdom is a central defender under a lot of pressure at the club because he has to follow in the foot steps of Jamie Carragher. Wisdom played well against Young Boys and he has a number of key attributes which he must utilise to mute the effectiveness of the Udinese attack. His main asset is pace which allows him to get out of trouble if he is caught out of position and also to cover for others when they are out of position.

Nuri Sahin

Nuri Sahin is the Turkish international on loan from Real Madrid. Sahin has come into the team more and more on all fronts in the last two weeks. He is a creative player and is always looking to make things happen when Liverpool are on the move. He will see a lot of the ball on Thursday and he will be very influential if his touch and control are both immaculate.

Oussama Assaidi

This is a name that not many neutral football fans will be aware of. The Moroccan player is a winger who can also play as a forward. He will be key against Udinese if he starts or comes off of the bench in terms of injecting pace into the team and also providing width. He can play on either wing which makes him a very useful tool for Rodgers to have in terms of Liverpool’s attack for this game.

Daniel Pacheco

Pacheco is a forward who was on the books at Barcelona during his time as a youth player. He is extremely talented in the hole or playing as a main forward. He has represented Spain at every level up to the Under-21s and this is a great chance for him to break into the Liverpool first team. He needs to stick on the Udinese back line and make sure they cannot push up.

Jerome Sinclair

Jerome Sinclair is another talented striker that Liverpool have at their disposal and Rodgers may decide to throw him in at the deep end after making him Liverpool’s youngest ever player in the League Cup match against West Brom. Sinclair is slight and quick which will make him useful moving from central to wider positions. His pace is quick enough to stretch the Udinese defence and he will be a real threat coming off the subs bench late in the game.

P/S: They will definitely get a chance to play against Udinese.