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Premier League champions Liverpool got their 2020-21 UEFA Champions League campaign off to a winning start with a 1-0 win over Ajax in Amsterdam.
The two sides created several scoring chances during the game but were eventually separated by an own goal from Ajax’s Argentine left-back Nicolas Tagliafico who turned Sadio Mane’s scuffed shot into his own net in the 35th minute.
The first half saw both sides carve out decent chances without really testing either goalkeeper. It was an unfortunate error from Tagliafico that brought about the half’s only goal and gave Liverpool a 1-0 lead going into the break.
The second period continued in much the same way as the first, with both teams creating promising opportunities but lacking the finishing touches. Both sides also made changes galore, with fatigue seemingly as big a concern as scoring goals.
However, there were no more goals in the game as Liverpool wrapped up the win and the three points with a solid defensive effort in the second half.
In their next Champions League fixtures, the Reds will welcome Midtjylland to Anfield while Ajax travel to Atalanta.
On that note, here are the five major talking points from Liverpool’s 1-0 win over Ajax in Amsterdam.
#1 Liverpool's squad depth comes to the fore in the absence of key personnel
After a hotly-contested Merseyside Derby last weekend, Liverpool were left rueing not just the result but also the long-term loss of Virgil van Dijk among other notable absentees.
Following on from the draw against Everton, Liverpool lost midfielder Thiago Alcantara and defender Joel Matip to injuries as well, while first-choice goalkeeper Alisson Becker continues to have a spell on the sidelines.
The English champions, who went into their Champions League season opener against Ajax with a few big names missing, can scarcely afford to lose any more players due to injuries or suspensions.
In Liverpool's upcoming domestic and European fixtures, Jurgen Klopp will have to rely heavily on squad depth to negotiate this tricky patch and carefully manage the workload of those returning from injuries.
That was quite apparent in Klopp’s decision to make a change at half-time before replacing all three of his forwards at the hour mark even when the match was far from won as he seemingly had one eye on the fixtures to come.
#2 Ajax production line continues to churn out talent
In May 2019, Ajax were a few seconds away from securing a place in the Champions League final against Liverpool, only for a last-gasp winner from Lucas Moura sending Tottenham Hotspur through instead.
A little over a year later, Ajax have lost a large chunk of the side that faced Spurs, with no less than six players from that starting-eleven moving on since then.
Nevertheless, the Dutch champions continue to produce one promising talent after the other as their side has a nice blend of youth and experience.
The likes of 18-year-old Ryan Gravenberch and 20-year-olds Perr Schuurs and Mohammed Kudus took to the field aganst Liverpool in the new-look Ajax side that also included veterans like Daley Blind and the returning Davy Klaasen.
Ajax have also been extremely astute in picking the right time for allowing their top talents to leave, which means that players like Andre Onana and Nicolas Tagliafico are still at the club despite attracting interest from other European clubs during the last couple of seasons.
#3 Fabinho shone in a new centre-back role
While Adrian has found it tough to fill Alisson Becker’s shoes in the Brazilian’s absence, one player who seems to be thriving in an unfamiliar role for Liverpool is Fabinho.
The departure of Dejan Lovren in the summer, coupled with injuries to other players, has necessitated Fabinho to step into the centre-back role for Liverpool, one that the Brazilian has carried out with great ease.
The former Monaco man, who has experience playing at right-back, played in central defence against Chelsea earlier this season and effectively marked Timo Werner out of the game.
Deployed in the same position against Ajax, Fabinho was excellent once again, making a number of excellent interceptions, including a vital clearance off the line, to help his side keep Ajax at bay.
Although Jurgen Klopp might not have planned for this eventuality, it appears that Fabinho could be the solution to his central defensive issues this season in Virgil Van Dijk’s absence.
#4 The five-substitutions rule is changing the dynamic of European competitions
When football resumed earlier this year after a lengthy layoff owing to the COVID-19 outbreak, a decision was made to have five substitutions instead of the usual three in most competitions to account for the players’ lack of match fitness and to prevent injuries.
For the 2020-21 season, the UEFA Champions League has decided to continue with the five-substitutions rule, adding an interesting new element to European fixtures.
This was a rule both Ajax and Liverpool were able to take advantage of during the course of this game, with the home side being forced into an early substitution due to injury.
For the visitors as well, workload management seemed to be of importance as Jurgen Klopp made no less than four changes before the hour mark.
What made that even more remarkable was that all three of Liverpool’s substitutions were made at the same time, something that was considered incredibly rare when only three substitutes were allowed.
This new rule has allowed managers in the Champions League to make wholesale tactical switches, replace injured players without second thoughts, experiment with formations and offer playing time to fringe players, which makes for a new and interesting spectacle for football fans to behold.
#5 Group D featuring Liverpool and Ajax promises a lot of entertainment
Although a 1-0 scoreline didn't suggest a particularly thrilling encounter, the chances created by both Ajax and Liverpool could easily have been a part of a high-scoring affair on another day.
Considering that free-scoring Atalanta, who registered an eye-catching 4-0 win over Midtjylland in the group’s other fixture, are also part of Group D, one can expect that there could be some really eye-catching games to come in the group.
Liverpool, Ajax, and Atalanta all like to play attacking, direct football that routinely sees them produce goal fests. When these free-scoring sides take each other on during later in the group, there could be goals galore.
