Steve Nicol was left frustrated by one tactical decision from Andoni Iraola during Liverpool’s defeat to Arsenal on Sunday.
The match was settled by Kai Havertz’s goal in the 16th minute and contained some controversial flashpoints, including a blatant penalty that the Reds should’ve been awarded and some unwelcome theatrics from Alexis Mac Allister after a clash with Noni Madueke.
Despite being on the losing side, the hosts were competitive for most of the game at Anfield, and it wasn’t until the surprise withdrawal of Trey Nyoni just before the hour mark that they began to lose the impetus they had in the middle of the park.
Nicol laments Nyoni’s withdrawal
Speaking on ESPN FC as he reflected on the match, Nicol felt that Iraola’s substitution of the teenager for Dominik Szoboszlai was a poor decision.
The ex-Liverpool defender said: “The one thing that frustrates me more than anything else is the substitution that Iraola made after 60 minutes.
“Other than the little spell in the first half just before and just after Arsenal’s goal, Liverpool were dominating the game. Mac Allister and Nyoni had locked the midfield up and Arsenal were under pressure.
“It was the same at the start of the second half, and when he made the substitution and brought Nyoni off and Szoboszlai on, I’m asking myself why is he not taking Wirtz off and leaving Mac Allister and Nyoni to dominate the way they have been. From that point on, this game changed.”
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Liverpool lost impetus after Nyoni was substituted
We agree with Nicol that the decision to withdraw Nyoni – who’d been enjoying a terrific game on his first Premier League start – seemed surprising at the time and, in hindsight, wasn’t a smart move by Iraola.
We’d understand it a bit more if the 19-year-old was on a yellow card and in danger of being sent off, although we’ll admit that he was fortunate to avoid going in the book for a couple of aggressive fouls early in the match.
While possession stats can sometimes be misleading, it seems indicative that Liverpool had 59.9% of the ball at the time that the teenager was substituted, and 56.4% by full-time (WhoScored), a notable drop-off after Nyoni’s withdrawal as the Reds lost a measure of control in the middle of the park.
Florian Wirtz – the player that Nicol had wanted to be subbed off instead – has been excellent in recent weeks but didn’t exert as much influence yesterday, and the midfield was much less balanced with him and Szoboszlai on the pitch for the final half-hour.
Whatever you make of Iraola’s substitutions, it’s a testament to how brilliantly Nyoni is doing that Liverpool lost impetus after he went off, and the case for keeping him in the starting XI has been strengthened after Sunday.
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