Liverpool finally clear Pulis hurdle to record victory

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Liverpool rise to second on the table after victory against West Bromwich Albion.

A club of the stature of Liverpool would not usually view a game against West Bromwich Albion as a test of their credentials, but recent history said otherwise. Coming into this fixture, Liverpool had drawn their last five games and only scored six goals against the Baggies.

For a long period of time West Brom manager Tony Pulis has been adept at stifling Liverpool’s key play-makers and slowing the tempo down into a real grinding contest. Heading into the clash the overall managerial record of Pulis against Liverpool was very impressive, losing just twice in 14 Premier League games with Stoke City, Crystal Palace and West Brom.

The clash with Manchester United on Monday night was a dress rehearsal of what they were going to expect against West Brom.

The Red Devils were able to suck the life out of the game with their defensive tactics, and early goals were going to be paramount in this contest.

Liverpool managed to do exactly that with two goals in the first 35 minutes through Sadio Mane and Philippe Coutinho. This forced the game to open up and take West Brom away from their preferred tactics. Although they conceded a sloppy goal in the last 10 minutes the Reds managed to claim an all-important three points and a rare victory against Pulis.

The pleasing thing for Jurgen Klopp coming out of the game is that although they scored just two goals, Liverpool were still able to create a number of opportunities with 21 shots for the game and importantly seven of those on target.

Another weak point for the Reds has been defending high balls and for the most part they were able to deal with the aerial threat that West Brom possess.

Liverpool will continue to face searching tests as the season progresses and they will likely have more impressive victories. However the importance of this win cannot be understated, and can be seen as a sign that they have learnt the harsh lessons of previous seasons.