Diogo Jota celebrating Liverpool's first goal.
The season ends too early for Diogo Jota. For a whole year he was waiting for a goal. He now has four matches in five days to keep Liverpool's Champions League hopes alive.
A week ago, the question arose as to how Jota would fit into Liverpool's Jurgen Klopp reboot when a full contingent of strikers is available.
By August, Luis Diaz and Darwin Nunez are expected to be the preferred options with Mohamed Salah. There are no such guarantees, Klopp argues, the era of Liverpool's predictable top three ended with Sadio Mane gone and Roberto Firmino starting his year-long farewell tour. Having vowed that the rest of this campaign will be a trial session next season, Klopp's belief in Hota is a signal of how fierce the competition for a starting spot in Liverpool's attacking trio is getting.
This has been an important week for the Portuguese striker. He has issued a timely and much needed reminder that he is not at Anfield to be an understudy.
Before last Monday, Jota returned to the field, but he did not actually return. He played 11 games after a four-month absence with a groin problem and bore no resemblance to the ultra-sharp striker who limped against Manchester City last October.
Oddly enough, the most disturbing of all his performances was the first 30 minutes at Elland Road. Jota was having trouble finding a teammate, his balance and touch was leaving him, and the pressure to end the goal drought seemed to play on his mind.
His first goal in that 6-1 thrashing made all the difference, demonstrating the role confidence plays in a footballer's career.
The momentum of the double in Yorkshire continued with two goals to give Nottingham Forest a manly performance at Anfield «. left without a reward. It's been typical of the Jota's past two seasons, with a close-range header, then juggling the ball in the box, and a great left-foot kick that evokes memories of Robbie Fowler.
“You can really see from the second goal what goals can do to attackers. They give confidence,” said Klopp.
“It was a super first touch. He could score another one. You see that he can be involved in every defensive situation and still be a threat offensively. That's what makes him so valuable to us.»
Jurgen Klopp (left) is delighted with Diogo Jota's performance Credit: Getty Images /Paul Ellis
While questions have been raised as to why Nunes was preferred to Hota, his understanding of the requirements off the ball as well as on the ball explains why. Where Nunez is tactically unpredictable, Jota has more natural game intelligence. However, it helps that he again makes an impact in the penalty area. His main task in the future is not to get injured.
This is undoubtedly Jota's most significant result since his return, which reinforces the feeling that those above Liverpool still have a lot of work to do in order for Klopp to focus on building the foundation for next season rather than looking for the gold nugget. . fourth among the wreckage of it.
Liverpool were superior without total control in their latest win, joining Forest in showing mastery of set pieces in attack and ineptitude of set pieces in defence. Every corner and free kick into Forest's box was met like a hand grenade, resulting in Liverpool scoring all three goals.
Similarly, Moussa Niakate's long-range shots eluded Liverpool's radar, causing panic throughout the chaotic second. half, five goals in 23 minutes. There could have been many more.
“All the goals could have been avoided,” said Forest coach Steve Cooper. “This is a real disappointment. We kept them to a minimum, scored two goals and hit the crossbar. So we did some decent things in the game. But there's no getting away from the fact that we lost.»
Of course, Salah had the final say, scoring another Trent Alexander-Arnold free kick behind Keylor Navas to equalize Fowler's 183 goals» Liverpool». There is no doubt that Salah will continue to lead Klopp's attack next season. Who will be by his side on opening day?
Liverpool's midfield is set to change over the summer, but Klopp will take comfort in the fact that with a rejuvenated Jota, his attacking ability has been given another polish.
Liverpool v Nottingham Forest lineups for 2022– 2023
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