5 Things We Learned From Liverpool Vs. Brisbane Roar

Adam Lallana and James Milner secured a 2-1 comeback as Reds new boys start to click.

A sea of red shirts overpowered the tangerine orange of the Brisbane Roar as Liverpool fans blasted out their spine tingling rendition of 'You Will Never Walk Alone' that echoed around Lang Park. Brendan Rodgers looked unfazed by the harmonic battle cry and selected four of his new signings in his first eleven as well as Divock Origi who was out on loan at Lille last season. Joe Gomez started at left back, Nathaniel Clyne at right back, James Milner played alongside Jordan Henderson in the middle of midfield and Danny Ings, Adam Lallana and Origi competed a 4-3-3 formation. The system didn't look entirely comfortable and despite the Reds dominating most of the possession their counter attacks were staggered and would have looked more fluid playing a 4-1-2-1-2 that would have gave new signing Ings more comfort than being isolated on the left flank. A Steven Gerrard-less midfield made up of Lucas Leiva, Milner and Henderson looked very effective going forward but unorganised defensively. Liverpool went a goal behind after all three central players allowed Brisbane to leisurely stride into the box and Mamadou Sakho and Martin Skrtel were left unable to stop Dimitri Petratos from scoring inside the area. Leiva's ability to orchestrate confidently as a anchorman is still questionable and despite Milner and Henderson's admirable work-rate the Reds looked disjointed when up against their opponents attacks. Goals from Lallana and Milner earned Liverpool a deserved 2-1 win and Rodgers will take the positives from a character building comeback as his side look ahead to the next pre-season fixture against Adelaide United on Monday night. Here is 5 things that we learned from today's game.
Contributor
Contributor

NCTJ-accredited football writer with an MA in Sports Journalism. What Culture football editor. Write for the official Newcastle United programme. Former video reporter at North News. Featured and published in the Sunderland Echo, Shields Gazette, Mail Online, The Mirror, The Sun and others.