Liverpool – Aston Villa: Counterattacks Supersede Control (2-0)

Arne Slot aimed to conquer through control, but succeeded with counterattacks to send Liverpool five points clear in the Premier League. Aston Villa were competitive throughout and conceded two preventable goals, although the visitors lacked any real open play threat with their best opportunities coming from set-pieces.

Tactical analysis and match report by Nick Smoothy.

Liverpool welcomed Aston Villa to Anfield on Saturday evening knowing a third home victory in a week would guarantee them top spot in the Premier League going into the November international break. It has been a contrasting past couple of weeks for the two clubs, resulting in this fixture being an opportunity for one team to continue their recent run of form whilst the other looks to arrest theirs.

For the hosts, everything is positive, as they lead the way both domestically and continentally. They twice came from behind to rescue a point away at Arsenal, before beating Brighton first in the cup and then in the league. In midweek, Liverpool made it four wins out four in Europe, beating Bayer Leverkusen 4-0, to go top of the new league phase format.

For the visitors, they are in a mini slump by their standards under Unai Emery. They conceded a 96th minute equalizer to Bournemouth at home, before a heavily rotated team were eliminated in the Carabao Cup by Crystal Palace. Two further defeats occurred, first . . .