By Jordan Carreno

Matchday 3 finally hands us a nice, comfortable kickoff time and day (12:30 pm EST, Saturday) as Kloppo and the Boys are back in town, at Anfield, to take on Brighton.

Liverpool v Brighton — 08/25/2018 17:30 GMT

It is the ‘Battle of the Birds’ and a repeat of the fixture that saw the Reds officially clinch Champions League qualification last season.

All three LFC Tampa Bay locations will be open and serving during the match. We’re also having a Rowdies tailgate before going to their match v FC Cincy as a supporters club later in the day. Whether you’re running the whole gauntlet with us or just taking in the Liverpool match, come on down and join your fellow Tampa Bay Reds in (hopefully) cheering on the lads to another 3 points. Without further delay, here are 3 talking points heading into the match.

Earning Respect, Staying Angry

Last week I mentioned how the team needed to rewrite some narratives to achieve their goals. The victory on Monday was, in many ways, a breath of fresh air and the first step down the road of creating new perceptions.

From having a center back pairing that just didn’t seem to be bothered, to scoring from limited chances, and having a goalkeeper that made the saves to keep us ahead, the manner in which that game was won showed Liverpool could win in a different way.

In prior seasons the football media machine might have chosen to point out how long it took Liverpool to put the game to bed and how few chances we actually created. They instead decided to focus on how well our defensive unit performed. Even Gary Neville himself (hiss!) couldn’t help but point out that this new found defensive stoutness of the Reds wasn’t actually new found at all and could be traced back to the signing of Van Dijk. It shouldn’t matter, but having and earning this type of respect from the press does a lot to alleviate outside pressure on the team.

However, despite all this well deserved praise, the team needs to “stay angry” as Klopp put it in a prior interview. All this adoration can be undone in one fell swoop.

Concede a questionable goal or two against Brighton and that media machine goes right back into its old views and prejudices about the squad. It will force Klopp to answer silly questions from the press and lead to plenty of columns examining transfer money spent and the tactics deployed by the Reds. Even with all the evidence presented in the last week, the narrative that “their defense doesn’t breed confidence” will creep back into the collective consciousness.

Another victory and solid performance at the back leading to a clean sheet will help the team continue to write its own narrative.

Given that Brighton have just beaten United, they’ll probably come to Anfield with the same game plan as most (and Palace on Monday) — park the bus and try to score on the counter. This gives Liverpool another opportunity to continue reshaping the perception about their ability to beat these types of teams. And with City still being the darlings of the press, there exists plenty of things for this team to prove to the outside world.

Main Mané

Mané has been the best performer so far out of the front 3 — a trend that may continue throughout the season

You could be forgiven, after last season, for forgetting that Salah was first viewed as “cover for Mané” when he signed for Liverpool. The year prior, an injury to the Senegalese forward almost derailed the Reds’ ambitions of qualifying for the Champions League. It was believed that Mo was brought in as the contingency plan if a similar situation presented itself. As we all know, the Egyptian King stole our hearts as he went on to have a record breaking year.

After those 32 Salah league goals, and a campaign that sputtered in the first half of the year for Sadio, the rankings of most dangerous Liverpool attacker had been rearranged.

There was even some rumblings of Mané having a poor season within the fan base. Of course once Mané rediscovered his form, he showed the class, power, and speed he put on display in his debut season and ended up having a great campaign; It was just overshadowed by his counterpart on the opposite wing.

Mané was asked after the West Ham game, where he scored 2 goals, if there was any friendly competition between the front three to score. He gave the professional answer, but I wouldn’t doubt there’s a burning desire inside Sadio to reclaim top spot. So far, with 3 goals in 2 games, he has been the fastest out of the gates. Mané has also looked a more steely and vicious character out on the pitch.

His speed and creativity will undoubtedly be needed in breaking down what will be an organized, defensive Brighton. Making the runs in behind, being able to move the ball in tight spaces, and being clinical with our chances will be necessary against this weekend’s opponents. These are all things Mané has been excelling at in the first two games.

When this season is all said and done, I wouldn’t be the least bit shocked if Mané has put in an effort rivaling Salah’s of last season. A goal or two at the weekend and he will be on an insane pace in the league. I won’t go as far as to say he breaks Mo’s record (even though I feel he will), but I do think this is the season for Mané to shine the brightest again.

Gini, The Shapeshifter

Gini is the gift that keeps on giving

Liverpool have had great success in signing players from freshly relegated teams under Klopp. Andy Robertson was an absolute revelation when he finally broke into the squad last season and Shaqiri showed us plenty in the preseason to get us excited. But it is the first of the relegation signings, Gini Wijnaldum, that is the most impressive.

When Gini arrived at the club, he arrived as a winger with loads of potential. He has since adapted to playing all three roles in the midfield and even deputised as a center back. No matter where he’s been placed on the pitch by Klopp, he has come through shining.

Much like Mané, Wijnaldum’s season was hampered last year by a strange midseason illness that saw him lose his spot. When injury finally presented an opportunity for him to win it back, he did so with flying colors. Since coming back into the first team he has played inspired football. Don’t forget, he scored the key away goal that got Liverpool to the Champion’s League final.

The start of this season has seen Gini perform on the same level if not an even higher one.

In the preseason we saw glimpses, mainly against Torino, of his ability to fly forward and create. In the first two games he’s taken up the role of the 6 and has done a world class job of breaking up play and distributing the ball.

At this point, I wouldn’t be surprised if Klopp decided to play him as the striker and Gini put in a performance to give Bobby a run for his money.

I will publicly apologize for even suggesting Klopp should have rotated Gini out against Palace. His performance bordered on the edge of being a 10. So, I expect him to keep his spot and be as influential as he was against Palace.

Whether that is as the holding player or as a box to box midfielder, he possesses the traits to perform either role at a high level.

Breaking up play higher up the pitch will once again help create the chances Liverpool want against teams that pack it in. Finding those killer balls and running at the defense will also be crucial. Whatever role he fills Saturday, Gini has earned my utmost confidence in his ability to execute.

Prediction

I’m undefeated, riding a hot streak, and getting full of myself. Confidence is at an all time high. I’m rewarding myself two points for correctly predicting we would win and get a clean sheet against Palace (much like ‘Whose Line Is It Anyways’, these points mean nothing).

I don’t really see Brighton coming to Anfield to play open football. After getting crushed 4–0 at the end of last season, I’m sure their main focus will be to make it closer. I absolutely love them to bits for beating United last week, but I’m going to be vicious in my prediction. It goes even worse than last time. 5–0!

David Rice’s Prediction: Brighton were absolutely dreadful away from home last season and struggled with consistency. Chris Hughton has already been pulling out the excuses about how difficult this fixture is and is citing our summer spending. Meanwhile, Klopp is comparing Virgil Van Dijk to a luxury car and I have to agree. Big Virg is Cadillac smooth and gives us all a comfortable ride in this one. Brighton see the bus blown out of the parking lot inside 20 minutes and in the second half Hughton’s defenders earn their keep simply by kicking the thing into Stanley Park every chance they get. Liverpool 3 Brighton 0.