Video: Martin Skrtel v. Chelsea

By: Noel | November 22nd, 2011

On Sunday, Martin Skrtel won 100% of his challenges on the ground, 100% of his challenges in the air, 100% of his tackles, added a pair of interceptions, and managed to be one of the very few players nobody seemed to think was to blame for Chelsea’s goal. John Terry and Frank Lampard won all their aerial challenges; Craig Bellamy and Didier Drogba won all their attempted tackles in attack; and Florent Malouda won all his aerials and tackles. Meanwhile, Skrtel also led both sides in total defensive clearances.

Until recently, most watching remained focused on the shaky season and a half Skrtel had experienced following a strong showing in Liverpool’s 2008-09 squad that made it to second in the league. He seemed to have rediscovered at least a portion of his earlier form with the arrival of Kenny Dalglish—and perhaps more importantly the arrival of defensive guru Steve Clarke along with him—yet still did have his share of nervy moments, enough that most weren’t entirely willing to forget the preceding stretch. In Liverpool’s last three games, though—all of which, perhaps significantly, saw Skrtel paired with Daniel Agger—he’s hit a rich vein of form and handed in perhaps his best string of performances in a Liverpool shirt.

After months of fans holding their breath any time Skrtel stuck his leg out to make a challenge in the penalty area, all of a sudden he seems a calm, assured, and confident presence. Now when he stretches to make a last ditch tackle he appears in control, and that he will come away with the ball on his toe seems nearly a foregone conclusion. Before the Chelsea match, 49.5% of Liverpool Offside readers voted in favour of the club moving forward with the pairing of Skrtel and Agger at the back—a crushing plurality more than 25 points ahead of any competitor. If that vote was held again today, the winning margin would be even larger.

Whether his current form can last is anybody’s guess, but for the time being it seems safe to say that in recent years Liverpool hasn’t looked anywhere near as certain at the back as they do now with Agger and Skrtel starting. Certainly it would seem as though the players, both individually and as a pair, have more than earned an extended run as Liverpool’s top defensive duo. And just as certainly, at least as much of that is down to Martin Skrtel as it is to Daniel Agger.

Video by the Red Nigerian

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Deconstructing Glen Johnson’s Goal v. Chelsea

Category: Match Recaps, Miscellaneous, Premier League

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DJ-Chutfield

Let's not forget his bromance with Carroll. I hear violin strings every time the opposite take a corner.
B Meng

I've watched the play starting at 0:21 at least 4 or 5 times and that's really world-class defending by Skrtel right there. He starts moving over to cover Mata's run the second Mata starts moving and takes the perfect path to the ball to cut out a potential shot on goal.
fiji bill

Agreed. Also at the start, at about 0:07, after winning an aerial duel with the Drog, Skrtel immediately follows it up with a perfectly timed tackle, hustling the Drogba into touch in a far from caressing manner. The Drog's response? "it's not fair! It's not fair", while throwing his arms up in pleading to his Ivorian gods.
adam el tani

nice song

No BusesArctic Monkeys
PDubz18

I'm watching the game for the 5th time, and I am still amazed about the performance. The biggest thing the team did against Chelsea was press as a team; the team pushed up and pressured the midfield as a team and did so in a disciplined manner. Against Tottenham, that discipline was nowhere to be seen. Against Swansea, that team pressing was nowhere to be seen. The problem is just the consistency of teamwork and pressing has to get there.
jpr

$300 mil pounds just doesn't buy what it used to. Mancini is up to his old Juve tricks.
jpr

Opta stat No.3: Liverpool have allowed their opponents fewer shots on target against them than any other team in the Premier League this season (38).
redtrev73

In the compound-word-loving parlance of the times, Sk-Agger > Carr-Agger > Sk-arragher.

That is all.
Latortillablanca

mad props to the slovakian meat head!!! but as a quick point - skrtel's form surely speaks to the partnership as much if not more so than it does to his own contributions. its pretty simple, skrtel is a bludgeon. carra is also a bludgeon. when they play together, its too much bludgeoning. agger is a conductor, an enabler. carra also fancies himself a conductor, enabler. when agger plays with carra, its too much conducting, enabling.

im not saying that agger/carra or skrtel/carra are terrible options, but agger and skrtel complete each other better than jerry mcguire and that blonde chick that is at times good looking but then you watch bridget jones (not that ive ever watched bridget jones...) and your like, "wtf? foul! bait and switch!"

so i guess what im trying to say is carra is bridget jones, but skrtel is the chick in jerry mcguire. cud u cast bridget jones in jerry mcguire? sure, in a pinch. but it wud not be the sensational blockbuster rom-com that sucks all men in on the pretense of sport only to deceivingly jerk some tears at the end, making it the perfect 'our movie' movie for couples. as it relates to citeh, i think the king realizes that right now we're at the 'show me the money' part and things are really starting to click for this pairing, so there's no reason to go back to watching hugh grant swoon over a pouty fat chick in between illicit sex benders until we're forced to...
CheekyFellow

1:50, dammit Glen.

Same pairing for Sunday, Carragher comes back on for the cup?
jpr

Carra, Spearo, Kelly on Tuesday CC should give us plenty of info. for comparisons. Hope we give AVBJTFFF the business both games.
Ed

At that point I was calling for Johnson to be taken off.

Me = genius.
David Aris-Sutton

You and me both cheeky, I was up and screaming at him when he did that, funny, I was up and screaming at the end because of Johnson aswell
Thomas Hoppe

I thought Skrtel had a poor season in 2008/09, but that is not important. Last season he was not particularly impressive other than playing every minute in the Premier League. You never knew where his headers were going to go and he still has shown a tendency to play the man instead of the ball in aerial situations. That being said, he looks to be improving this season. And since he has moved to the right to partner Agger he seems more comfortable and confident. He has also been a factor from set pieces...when we get the ball into the box.
Latortillablanca

the gaps' deliveries were pretty dumbfounding considering he played such a big hand in this victory... i think, offensively, its just something we have to accept - either he will be off on set pieces but contribute some mcnasty pass in open play, or he'll be attrociously lazy in open play, but pop in a peach for someone to head in. perhaps every once in a while he'll put together a complete game. whatever, it seems he'll create chances one way or another, so i'm at peace widdit...