Liverpool boss Matt Beard admitted his squad were being held back by injuries after their 4-0 defeat to Manchester United in the Barclays Women’s Super League on Sunday.
Though they finished above rivals United and beat them twice in the league last season, yesterday saw a gutting defeat at Leigh Sports Village for Beard’s injury-hit side. A rapidfire double concession towards the end of the first half gave Liverpool a mountain to climb after a fairly open first period, and goals from Dominique Janssen and Melvine Malard in the second half finished them off.
What did Matt Beard say?
“I feel we started the game quite well but we had a moment of madness for two minutes that killed the game for us and then obviously the third goal finishes the game,” Beard told reporters. He attributed the first two goals to individual errors from his players, but also admitted a change to the defensive formation didn’t pay off.
“We felt with the personnel we had available that would be the best way to go. (In a) 5-3-2 we dominate defensively, but I just don’t think we’ve been creating enough going forward this year. It was a bit of a gamble today and it has back-fired. I don’t think we’ve defended that badly today – the goals have come from misplaced passes and we need to sort it out as we can’t keep shipping goals like we have been doing. Against the top sides, it’s happening everywhere. They are scoring goals for fun and the rest of us are playing catch-up.”
Embed from Getty ImagesLiverpool’s squad looks increasingly thin, as Beard is freshly without Hannah Silcock, Gemma Evans, and Marie Höbinger due to injuries over the international break.
“It’s frustrating. We know we have one of the smallest squads in the division. We can only work with the resources that we have budget-wise… We had seven players sitting in the stands today, which does have an impact.
“We were consistent last year with team selection, we were consistent with so many different things – whereas this year I don’t think I’ve been able to pick the same team twice. Last year we had a great togetherness, a good squad and players that were new to the league and a little bit unknown. This year we’ve not had that luck.
“We just don’t have the depth of the squad. I’ve got three fit midfield players – (Sofie) Lundgaard’s done her ACL, I’ve got (Marie Höbinger) now out for six weeks, missed Sophie Roman Haug most of the season – these are big players that had a big impact on our season last year. We had to start the season with players that were playing modified minutes. That’s the position that we’ve been put in, and we’ve been playing catchup ever since.
“The winter break will come at the right time and will give us a rest. We know we can be in a better position than we are and that’s the reality of it but we need to stick together.”
Embed from Getty ImagesHowever, teenager Zara Shaw’s performance was a major positive. The 17-year-old, who scored for Liverpool against Newcastle United last month, earned a starting berth on Sunday and Beard praised the “exceptionally talented” midfielder as his best player against United.
“She’s got a mature head on her shoulders and is an exciting player for the future. She has an opportunity now to get into the team [more often].”
Liverpool face local rivals Everton in the League Cup on Wednesday before finishing 2024 with a clash against Arsenal -who are unbeaten under interim boss Renée Slegers – on Sunday.