Ten changes, less of the ball and less xG: Liverpool's energy, two long-range strikes and Mamardashvili's saves beat Tottenham Hotspur.
The numbers
| Liverpool | Tottenham Hotspur | |
|---|---|---|
| Possession | 43.5% | 56.5% |
| Shots | 12 | 17 |
| On target | 5 | 6 |
| xG | 1.85 | 2.24 |
| Corners | 5 | 9 |
| Pass accuracy | 82.9% | 86.4% |
Result the chances deserved: Liverpool 33% / 20% / Tottenham Hotspur 47% (Poisson).
Starting line-ups
Liverpool (4-2-3-1): Mamardashvili, Frimpong, Araujo, Gomez, Kerkez, Nyoni, Mac Allister, Ngumoha, McConnell, Gakpo, Koumas.
Tottenham Hotspur (4-2-3-1): Dúbravka, Gray, Adarabioyo, Senesi, Udogie, Bentancur, Bergvall, Kudus, Gallagher, Tel, Marmoush.
Tottenham Hotspur subs: Robertson (57', Udogie), Mateus Fernandes (57', Bentancur), Maddison & Sávio (75', Gallagher & Kudus), Solanke (85', Tel). Tottenham head coach: Roberto De Zerbi. Shapes from FotMob.
Key moments, move by move
- Gomez finds Gakpo, who chests the ball down in Tottenham Hotspur's half.
- Gakpo plays it out to Ngumoha on the right.
- Ngumoha runs at Udogie, who stabs the ball along the edge of the box to Mac Allister (the club's report describes it as a Ngumoha cut-back).
- Mac Allister hits it first time with his right foot from about 15 yards, into the top-right corner.
- Kerkez flicks on a pass from Ngumoha to Mac Allister on the edge of Tottenham Hotspur's box.
- Mac Allister slips a pass into Gakpo in the left channel of the box.
- Gakpo cuts inside Gray onto his right foot.
- A powerful shot goes across Dúbravka into the far corner, in front of the Kop.
- Substitute Mateus Fernandes takes a corner from the left.
- Mamardashvili comes for it and doesn't reach it.
- Gallagher steals in and heads it in from close range.
- Gakpo lifts a clever pass towards Szoboszlai, about 30 yards out.
- Szoboszlai chests it down.
- He hits it with his right foot; the shot curls away from Dúbravka's dive into the top-right corner.
A rotated side that won the duels, not the ball
- Ten changes. Only Araujo kept his place from the Fulham draw. Iraola said Liverpool "lacked a little bit of energy" three days earlier and needed fresh legs, and he picked Nyoni, McConnell, Ngumoha and Koumas (Liverpool FC).
- Pressing and duels: Sky Sports says Liverpool's pressing disrupted Tottenham Hotspur's build-up, and Iraola praised the young players' "willingness of winning the duels". The cost showed in the discipline: 15 fouls and three yellow cards to Tottenham's 11 and two (Sky Sports).
- Tottenham Hotspur had the ball: 56.5% possession, 17 shots to 12 and 2.24 xG to 1.85 (FotMob). Bergvall (11') and Kudus (32') missed good chances in the first half, and Mamardashvili saved from Kudus (60') and Marmoush (86'). He made five saves in all.
- Finishing: two of Liverpool's goals came from outside or on the edge of the box: Mac Allister from about 15 yards and Szoboszlai from about 30. Gakpo was involved in two of the three, with a goal and an assist.
Recreate it in FM26
Liverpool · Iraola's young pressing side: win duels, shoot early · 4-2-3-1Show cardHide card
Iraola's young pressing side: win duels, shoot early
| Pos | Player | In Possession | Out of Possession |
|---|---|---|---|
| GK | Mamardashvili | Goalkeeper | Sweeper Keeper |
| RB | Frimpong | Wing-Back | Pressing Full-Back |
| RCB | Araujo | Centre-Back | Stopping Centre-Back |
| LCB | Gomez | Centre-Back | Covering Centre-Back |
| LB | Kerkez | Full-Back | Pressing Full-Back |
| RDM | Nyoni | Box-to-Box Midfielder | Pressing Defensive Midfielder |
| LDM | Mac Allister | Deep-Lying Playmaker | Defensive Midfielder |
| RW | Ngumoha | Inside Forward | Tracking Winger |
| AM | McConnell | Attacking Midfielder | Tracking Attacking Midfielder |
| LW | Gakpo | Inside Forward | Winger |
| ST | Koumas | Channel Forward | Tracking Centre Forward |
Team instructions
In Possession
- Passing DirectnessMore Direct
- TempoHigher
- Shots from DistanceEncouraged
Out of Possession
- Line of EngagementHigh Press
- Trigger PressMore Often
- TacklingAggressive
The idea: Koumas and McConnell lead the press, Nyoni jumps onto the opposition's midfielders, and Liverpool play forward quickly once they win it. You need young, fit runners who win duels, and a calm passer like Mac Allister to use the ball; Encouraged long shots reflect the two goals from distance.
What FM26 can't copy: FM26 can't reproduce the quality of Szoboszlai's 30-yard finish, and with this card your side will concede plenty of shots, as Liverpool did.
Our reading of this match in FM26 terms, not an exported tactic file. Role names as in FM26.
What if? Replay it with a different plan
Our best alternative plan: Formation 4-3-3, Endo on at 70' (for McConnell), Isak on at 70' not 86' (for Koumas). A midfield three to contest the ball with Bergvall and Bentancur, then Endo and Isak at 70' to protect the lead and threaten on the break. That trims Tottenham Hotspur's chances without losing the energy that won the game. It moves Liverpool's win chance from 33% to 40% (xG 1.85–2.24 becomes 1.90–1.84). Try your own changes to formation, pressing, approach and substitutions.
The game-changer Liverpool needed
Wataru Endo
Liverpool were out-shot 17 to 12 and Tottenham Hotspur's best chances came after the ball got past a young midfield: Kudus's volley, Bergvall's early chance, Marmoush's late shot at 2-1. Endo is the squad's specialist screen, and after Gallagher's goal at 69' he was the natural player to close the game.
Kobbie Mainoo
Liverpool's rotated midfield won duels but kept the ball poorly: 43.5% possession and 305 accurate passes to Tottenham Hotspur's 413. Mainoo receives under pressure and turns out of it, which would have let a young side keep the ball after winning it instead of handing it straight back.
What the analysts said
“All the players have given us intensity, have given us aggressiveness... we've deserved the reward to win the game.”Andoni Iraola
“The energy he shows is contagious for the rest.”Andoni Iraola on Lewis Koumas
“We could see the other day we lacked a little bit of energy, we needed fresh legs.”Andoni Iraola
“We created chances to win the game... I believe in my players.”Roberto De Zerbi (Sky Sports)
The energy was real. The control was not.
What's happening. A Liverpool side with ten changes beat Tottenham 3–1 in the League Cup. The young players pressed and competed three days after a flat 0–0 with Fulham. Two goals came from shots from distance, and goalkeeper Mamardashvili made five saves.
How it works. Koumas and McConnell led the press and Nyoni jumped onto Tottenham's midfielders, which disrupted their build-up. But Tottenham still had more of the ball and more shots. A young pressing side can unsettle better opponents; it usually gives up chances when the press is beaten.
What the shots say. There is no public shot-level xG for this game, so we built it from the play-by-play with our own model. It gives Tottenham the better chances and a win in about six replays of ten. Liverpool won on finishing: Mac Allister's first-time strike and Szoboszlai's 30-yarder are not chances that usually go in.