“Painful to watch at times”: Match reaction to Liverpool’s loss to Southampton

Last night saw Liverpool suffer their second loss of the Premier League season with a 1-0 defeat to Southampton at St Mary’s, with the Reds facing a frustrating and difficult night away from home.

It was a nightmare start for the Reds, with former Liverpool striker Danny Ings netting in just the second minute with a lobbed finish over Alisson to give the Saints the early lead and clearly exposing the inexperienced defensive pairing of Jordan Henderson and Fabinho.

Jurgen Klopp’s side looked slow and lethargic for much of the first half an hour of the game, with the battle in midfield being lost on many an occasion and the Reds failing to keep possession against their opposition.

Chances were coming the Reds’ way but every time they managed to get the ball in the final third they were met by a myriad of Saints players behind the ball as well as Fraser Forster who seemed on form for his first start of the season between the sticks.

For much of the first half, the Reds were trying to make up lost ground after Ings’ opener, with missed chances falling our way and both Mo Salah and Roberto Firmino failing to convert great chances provided by Sadio Mané from the left.

As has been the case with many of Liverpool’s games this season, much of the game was watching the team try and get past an opposition that have 11 players behind the halfway line – it was a case of breaking down brick walls for much of the second half and that coupled with inconsistencies with VAR and the luck against Klopp’s squad, it was becoming more and more frustrating as the minutes went by.

Chance after chance came Liverpool’s way but the Reds failed to make anything materialise with everything against them and a mountain to climb for the majority of the game.

I found the game painful to watch at many times, with me rubbing my forehead more often than having my eyes on the game itself – the Reds just couldn’t make anything of their chances or when in possession and with the Saints sitting back in defence from the 2nd minute until the end of the game just made it even harder for a frustrated Liverpool to get themselves back in the game.

The loss was a frustrating one to take and leaves the club with not much of an advantage in the league table with them now facing second-place Manchester United next week in a must-win game.