Liverpool started off their 2016-2017 Premier League with an excellent 3-4 win against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium. Two goals from Coutinho and one each from Lallana and Mane were enough to push Liverpool over the line, even with Arsenal coming back strongly after going down 4-1. From Mignolet to Firmino up front everyone played as one cohesive unit, closing in together and then turning defense into attack in no time. While Wenger has brought struggled to get players in this summer, Klopp has been fairly successful in bringing a host of players to Anfield. His task will be helping these new signings integrate quickly. the German manager handed debuts to Wijnaldum, Mane and Klaven on matchday one but the most impressive performance came from Philippe Coutinho.
The Brazillian brought the away team level with an exquisite free-kick, which gave Cech no chance. He soon doubled Liverpool’s advantage in the second half with a deft flick on the near post. Even if we leave the two goals, there were enough moments of magic from the Brazilian midfielders that suggest that this could the season when he finally makes his place amongst the best footballers in the world. Since his move to Anfield in 2012-2013, Coutinho has just been getting better with each passing season.
Earlier he was in the shadow of Suarez and Sterling but now the fans see him as the creative hub of the team. Whenever the team is struggling to get a few passes together, everyone expects Coutinho to come with some moment of brilliance. The former Inter Milan player scored 12 times last season but has already made his intentions clear for next season. “Yes, I think I can score more this season, ” Coutinho told the Liverpool Echo. “I always said that the one thing I really needed to improve was to score more goals.”
Liverpool were struggling to get a foothold in the game until Coutinho decided to thump his 30-yard free kick into Cech’s side-netting. That one moment completely changed the direction of the game and Liverpool came out firing in the second half, which completely blew the Gunners. One look at Coutinho’s stats will tell you that his goals don’t only come against lower sides but also against the top clubs in the league. He is also excellent in dying stages, therefore it’s clear that Coutinho has a habit of scoring with great psychological significance.
The fact that Klopp is focusing on equitable goal share amongst his players rather than one striker with 20-25 goals, shows the amount of trust he has in the players like Coutinho, Mane and Firmino. With his high pressing style, Coutinho a number 10 has many different options to pass forward to whenever he finds himself with possession of the ball in the attacking third.
Therefore Coutinho has all the necessary ingredients to make this season his own. If he does perform at the level expected from him, then Liverpool will definitely be in the running for the top four places.