BEVERLY HILLS, February 13, (THEWILL) – Nigeria’s Wilfred Ndidi, midfielder for English Premier League side Leicester City, produced a Man-of-the-Match performance and an assist for their third goal today to help his side against defending Champions Liverpool, whom they beat at home by three goals to one.
The midfielder was in magnificent form as he stood guard in front of the back four of Foxes defence-line. He won countless challenges as Liverpool dominated for long spells. As impressive as his ground game was, Ndidi matched that with a superb performance in the air for an all-round classy display that was peerless.
With his marshalling of the midfield, Leicester resolutely held off the unflagging intensity of the Liverpool side, even after conceding first, seven minutes after the hour mark. They kept their head up, pursued the game and by full time had inflicted a 3-1 defeat in Jurgen Klopp’s 300th match in charge.
The dramatic collapse of the men from Anfield in the less than 30 minutes remaining after taking the lead and from a position of strength was uncanny and unexpected of a Klopp side. The defeat meant the champions slipped to a third successive beating, after Brighton Hove Albion (1-0) and Manchester City (4-1).
The defensive vulnerabilities, which have doomed the Reds this season and for which they made two desperate buys on deadline day in January, came to the fore again to do them in. Coincidentally, it was one of the newcomers, debutant Ozan Kabak, that together with keeper Allison Becker, gifted Jamie Vardy his first goal of 2021 and Leicester’s second.
Nothing displayed the porosity at the back for Liverpool than the third goal which came about four minutes after Vardy made it 2-1. Harvey Barnes completed the dramatic late turnaround with a clinical strike that caught the defense moping in stunned disarray.
The injuries to Virgil van Dijk, Joel Matip, Fabinho and Joseph Gomez have neutered the strength of the Reds’ defense and the only truly reliable member of that sturdy class, keeper Alisson, has now failed to keep that flag flying for the second match in a row. Though he began sharply to cast aside the horror show against City, the capitulation at the end on Saturday will do some damage to his confidence.
Another defeat to another top four rival has all the makings of a fatal blow to Liverpool’s title chances for the season, a fact that aligns with the humble submission that Klopp himself made after the 4-1 Anfield drubbing by League leaders Manchester City last Sunday. The situation is worsened by the fact that the club sides under Liverpool’s fourth position are seeking to overtake them now.
With no time to mourn, Klopp’s charges must gather what is left of their wits and gear up for their UEFA Champions League last 16 fixture against Bundesliga side RB Leipzig. The hope for European football next season may very well lie in the UCL for them this season and Leipzig is no small fry.
At the other side of the UCL test, Carlo Ancelotti’s Everton await when Liverpool returns to the EPL. Neither of these fixtures will allow them the pleasure of healing from the third consecutive loss but if they can perform at the level their quality boasts of on paper while holding the cracks at the back together long enough to see off this pair of fixtures, it will provide a massive boost of confidence for the side and take some of the pressure off.
It is not impossible and they can put their minds to it as they take their loss back to Anfield, leaving Ndidi and his teammates from the King Power Stadium to celebrate their triumph.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
