Diaz leads the charge after Nunez moment of madness but Liverpool already playing catch up

Liverpool’s preparations for the visit of Crystal Palace had been so disrupted that Jurgen Klopp joked he feared a witch had taken up residence inside Kirkby’s AXA Training Centre.

Joel Matip and Roberto Firmino had joined an injured list that already included the names of Thiago, Ibrahima Konate, Diogo Jota, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Curtis Jones, Calvin Ramsay and Caoimhin Kelleher.

To add to the manager’s selection headache, Joe Gomez and captain Jordan Henderson were both deemed only fit enough for bench duty after also picking up knocks in training. When it rains, it pours.

Early in the second half against Palace, Klopp must have feared the broomstick had been parked outside Anfield. Liverpool certainly looked cursed.

They had enjoyed 75 per cent possession in the opening 45 minutes and had mustered 17 attempts on goal to four. Yet somehow they trailed to Wilfried Zaha’s goal on the counter-attack and then their problems deepened when big summer signing Darwin Nunez lost his head.

His red card was senseless. Yes, there was provocation from Joachim Andersen, but the Uruguayan’s reaction was inexcusable.

After the excitement generated by his eye-catching cameos against Manchester City and Fulham, this was an alarming regression. Having previously looked the part, this time he was the odd man out as he let his team-mates down. It was a moment of madness. A rush of blood.

So desperate to impress on his home debut, Nunez’s growing sense of frustration had been clear for all to see. There was a volley that flew over before he struck the post when he looked destined to score. Then he scuffed his shot in front of the Kop after being played in by Mohamed Salah.

When the combative Andersen continued to wind him up, the red mist descended as Nunez turned and thrust his head in the Danish defender’s direction. Referee Paul Tierney had no option. The only previous Liverpool player to be sent off on his first Premier League appearance at Anfield was Joe Cole in 2010.

“A little provocation here and there, and definitely the wrong reaction,” admitted Klopp. “A clear red card, I cannot deny that. Yeah, he will learn from that. Unfortunately, he has now a few games to do so. That’s not cool for us in our specific situation. Of course I will speak with him. But not yet. He made a mistake.”

Nunez will be suspended for next Monday’s trip to Manchester United and the home games against Bournemouth and Newcastle. Firmino is expected to be back available to line up at Old Trafford with Jota still on the comeback trail.

“It’s another ‘pre-season’ for Darwin. We’ll use it for physical work, not as punishment, just to make him even stronger,” adds Klopp.

It’s just the ninth red card of Klopp’s near seven-year reign and the first for violent conduct. Nunez has to learn from it because you can guarantee that top-flight defenders will attempt to follow Andersen’s lead, especially in a season when referees are more reluctant to whistle for infringements.

As one South American attacker sulked off down the tunnel and left Liverpool in a sizeable hole, another grabbed his spade and set about trying to dig them out of it.

Suddenly, Luis Diaz came alive. There was no numerical disadvantage effectively because the Colombian doubled his efforts. It was like someone had suddenly plugged him into the mains.

Diaz has been a revelation since his £50million ($60.1m) move from Porto at the end of the January window. There’s been so much to admire in terms of his work ethic and quality but just six goals in 26 appearances last season didn’t do justice to his impact.

For all the trickery and mesmerising approach play, there wasn’t enough end product. Too often when bearing down on goal he fell short. This was a significant step towards putting that right.

“Sometimes you need that moment of brilliance,” says vice-captain James Milner. “Obviously when you’ve got players like him on the pitch that can create something out of nothing, it was an incredible goal and hopefully there’ll be many more to come this season from him.”

When Diaz received the ball wide on the left just past the hour mark, there appeared to be little danger. Moments later he had darted away from Jordan Ayew and then jinxed his way beyond Cheick Doucoure, Nathaniel Clyne, Joel Ward and Jeffrey Schlupp before nailing a right-footer into the far corner.

“World class, a wonderful goal,” says Klopp. “And from that moment on it was a special game. That was us at home with an incredible atmosphere.”

What epitomised Diaz’s tireless contribution more than anything was how he tracked back to dispossess Zaha inside the centre circle soon after to curtail a dangerous break. There was a roar of approval from the stands.

Klopp threw caution to the wind. Rarely has a team a man down bossed proceedings on this scale, but both Salah and substitute Fabio Carvalho narrowly failed to convert when well placed.

The impact of Gomez and Henderson off the bench made you wonder how different it would have been had they started. Credit too to Harvey Elliott, who more than repaid the faith shown in him as he started for the first time this season.

How different the outcome may have been had Liverpool been more ruthless during a ridiculously one-sided opening 30 minutes. Instead they were wasteful and then conceded against the run of play.

“The protection was actually right with Trent (Alexander-Arnold) and Fabinho there but they got out of there and that shouldn’t have happened. Then it’s difficult in the last line with the speed of Zaha,” says Klopp.

Liverpool were wounded by going behind and took time to respond. For a period it went very flat. It was only after the red card that a packed house parked their anxiety and channelled their energy into making Anfield more intimidating. The players could have done with that noise earlier.

“It’s not often with 10 v 11 you can put the 11 under pressure as much as we did,” admits Klopp, who switched to 4-4-1.

Liverpool are still unbeaten domestically in 2022. In the circumstances, with Diaz leading the charge after Nunez’s dismissal, it’s no wonder Klopp declared himself so proud. You had to admire the guts and the resilience.

Yet too many draws effectively cost Liverpool the title last season and the new season has started in a similar vein. Nunez will have to sit and watch as they attempt to put that right. Thankfully, Diaz has the look of a man ready to shoulder the extra responsibility.

(Top Photo: Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images)