Pat Nevin felt things began to spiral out of Liverpool’s control after Jurgen Klopp carried Thiago Alcantara off the pitch.
World-class midfielder Fabinho replaced the Spaniard in the 58th minute with the Reds dominating much of the process beforehand.
“Liverpool have struggled to control the game since Thiago came out,” the pundit told BBC Radio 5 Live (via BBC Sport).
The former Bayern Munich player has become a central part of the Anfield-based team following his move from Germany and the avalanche of criticism his early performances attracted.
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With the classy playmaker capable of dictating the flow and pace of a game, it stands to reason that his absence would have a negative impact on any top team in Europe.
Still, it could be fairly argued that his departure hardly justified such an upside-down performance from his teammates left on the field as the coaching changes failed to have the desired impact.
However, considering we have another game in three days’ time, it’s entirely possible that Klopp wanted to make sure his biggest stars stayed fresh in what is a tortuous month of football.
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