Burnley v Liverpool - Player Ratings

[ClaretLoup]

I'm stunned by some marks higher than 4 for Wood, apart from the chance he had I thought he was shocking, lightweight,slow, always on his heels, looks bored half the time and constantly offside.

Up against the UEFA player of the year who beat Messi & Ronaldo to the award and Klopp who said in his post match presser that they deliberately set a high line to catch him and Barnes offside. He didn't have the best of games and his limitations are perhaps exposed against the better teams in the division, but 'looks bored' at least level some criticisms that are merited.

[ClaretLoup]

Pope - 7 made at least 3 saves that kept the score down
Lowton - 4 some really dreadful distribution at times
Pieters - 6 handled Salah quite well but didn't get forward much
Mee - 5 really poor mistake for the killer goal the equivalent of Joe Root out for a duck.
Tarkowski - 7 battled hard to stem the tide
Lennon - 6 didn't see much of the ball, a decent cross on the one occasion he got past his man.
Cork - 6 held his own to some extent
Westwood - 5 some dodgy distribution at times but the oppo were very very quick to close down
McNeil - 5 some uncharacteristically poor set pieces and little effect on the game
Wood - 5 ran into a brick wall in the shape of Van Dyke
Barnes - 5 has admitted previously that the Colossus is his most difficult opponent and so it proved to be

Jayrod - 5 caught offside once and fluffed a decent chance.

[Blyclaret]

Some of the comments on here this morning
Some people need to give their heads a wobble.
Comments like .... Pieters did not get forward enough
He was marking Salah for gods sake .... one of the best forwards in Europe.
And wood not good enough ... he was marked by the best defender in the WORLD.

[Zenwisdom]

Pope 5
Lowton 3 out of his depth
Pieters tough day 5
Mee 5
Tarks MoM could have scored 7
Cork 4 out muscled by Henderson
Westwood 4 distribution poor
McNeill 6 tried but well marked
Lennon found space 6
Barns 4
Wood 4 could have scored early both strickers were out muscled
Up against it today and we give them a. 2 goal start

[Jakubs Tash]

Pope 7

Lowton 6
Tarkowski 8
Mee 6
Pieters 6

Lennon 5
Westwood 6
Cork 6
McNeil 7

Wood 5
Barnes 5

[Swizzlestick]

Pope 5 - done by a fluke and the others not much chance
Lowton 4 - tough day for both full backs
Pieters 4 - as above
Mee 5 - poor error, otherwise did ok
Tarkowski 7 - showed his class
Lennon 5 - huffed and puffed
McNeil 6 - showed flashes here and there
Westwood 5 - not one of his better games
Cork 6 - did ok
Barnes 4 - never got a sniff
Wood 4 - looked cumbersome

Jay Rod 5 - did alright, looked a bit sharper

[Longsidelenny]

Well said

[Bertiebeehead]

This board is getting beyond a joke now. the low marks and comments are ridiculous. we were playing the European champions for gods sake. do you not get that.

You’d like to think the players knew that too and were at the top of their game, sadly a few just didn’t show up. Lowton being the worst offender.

[Swizzlestick]

This board is getting beyond a joke now. the low marks and comments are ridiculous. we were playing the European champions for gods sake. do you not get that.

What, so we should give higher marks just for showing up against the big teams? It’s not a school sports day.

No one’s expecting to take points against teams like Liverpool but we can at least try and give them a tough game throughout. Did we really do that?

[Bin Ont Turf]

Barnes - 4 owned by van dijk

Had to keep your irrational dislike of Ashley under wraps recently.

[the_magic_rat]

Pope 6

Lowton 6
Tarkowski 8
Mee 6
Pieters 8 mom

Lennon 7
Cork 7
Westwood 7
McNeil 7

Barnes 5
Wood 6

Rodriguez 6

[Jase_H]

Pope 6
Lowton 5
Tarkowski 8
Mee 6
Pieters 6
Lennon 6
Westwood 6
Cork 6
McNeil 7
Barnes 5
Wood 6

[Stalbansclaret]

Pope 6
Lowton 3 woeful
Peters 3 God help us if he is better than Taylor
Mee 4 As bad as I can remember
Tarks 7 mom
Lennon 3 shocking
Cork 3 useless
Westwood 3 as above
Mcneil 4 Dyche will ruin him
Barnes 6 at Least tried
Wood 1 absolutely pathetic
Subs J Rod 1 hopeless if he wasn't from Burnley all hell would break loose
Dyche 0 let's keep knocking it onto van dykes head. Pathetic

As bad a post I can remember reading on here..which says a lot. Lowton did, indeed, have a stinker but Pieters was vastly better . The marks for Cork, Westwood, Mcneil and Wood a, oh and Rodriguez, are just laughable. Probably best to go and "support"someone else I think.

[Stalbansclaret]

Pope 6...don't think he could do anything about the first and made a couple of decent saves. Probably needs a few games to get back to what he was but I'm very sure we still have a great keeper.
Lowton 4....seemed to lose the ability to pass the ball as the game went on
Pieters... 7 contrary to many on here I thought he had a decent game. Would prefer Taylor but credit where it's due.
Tarks ....8 and rightly made MoM
Mee....6 notwithstanding the horrendous error as defended well the rest of the time
Cork 6...I don't get the dislike on here. Must be incredibly difficult playing against that opposition and he was generally pretty tidy I thought. A bit lightweight at times sure but nowhere near as poor as some like to make out
Westwood 5...his worst game for a while I thought
McNeil 7....very good first half though the customary fade as the lost cause went on
Lennon 5...worked hard but he just doesn't look like he's got it any more.
Barnes 4...anonyomous and totally dominated by Van Dyck
Wood 5...worked hard and if only he'd put that chance away in the 2nd minute after a great bit of control and a nice turn inside. Was incredibly unlucky with the 1st goal after tracking back speedily. Ultimately was also dominated by Van Dyck who is a player on a totally different level.

Jay Rod 6....unlucky after a nice run

We would almost certainly have lost without those two goals in the first half but I thought it wa s a really engrossing game until that point and some of the criticism on here just demonstrates a total lack of perspective.

[NickPopeFan]

Pope 7
Lowton 5
Pieters 5
Mee 5
Tarky 7
Lennon 6
Cork 6
Westwood 5
McNeil 6
Wood 4
Barnes 5

[IanMcL]

Pope 7

Lowton 6
Tarkowski 8
Mee 6
Pieters 7

Lennon 6
Westwood 7
Cork 7
McNeil 7

Wood 6
Barnes 6

I thought we played well, bar the first two silly goals, we were right in it.

Refreshingly, on one break which ended in a Lennon cross, 4 players had made the box.

Used to be one, if we were lucky.

[JohnMcGreal]

Pope 7
Lowton 4
Tarkowski 8
Mee 5
Pieters 5
Lennon 5
Cork 6
Westwood 5
McNeil 6
Wood 5
Barnes 5

Rodriguez 6

[Paul Waine]

Jonathan Northcroft's ratings from his report on the game in today's Sunday Times:

Burnley: Pope 7, Lowton 6, Tarkowski 6, Mee 7, Pieters 6, Lennon 6, Westwood 7, Cork 6, McNeil 5, Wood 6, Barnes 6 (Rodriguez 73min, 5)

Liverpool: Adrian 6, Alexander-Arnold 7, Matip 7, Van Dijk 7, Robertson 7, Henderson 7 (Oxlade-Chamberlain 71min, 5), Fabinho 8, Wijnaldum 6, Salah 7, Firmino 9 (Shaqiri 85min, 5), Mane 7 (Origi 85min, 5)

Posting as a reference for some of our fellow Clarets.

I'm not saying I'd have rated the same as the journalist. I'll concede he has seen more games than me, certainly over the past several seasons.

His report is headlined: Liverpool in cruise control as Firmino finishes off Burnley - I think this is "fair enough."

[fungus_the_bogeyman]

Pope 7
Lowton 4
Pieters 5
Tarkowski 8
Mee 5
Lennon 6
McNeil 7
Westwood 6
Cork 7
Barnes 5
Wood 5

[Scott Arfield's Swag]

Pope 7
Lowton 5
Tarkowski 8*
Mee 5
Pieters 5
Lennon 6
Cork 5
Westwood 5
McNeil 8
Barnes 5
Wood 6

[ksrclaret]

Pope 6
Lowton 4
Tarkowski 8
Mee 4
Pieters 4
Lennon 6
Cork 5
Westwood 4
McNeil 5
Barnes 5
Wood 4

Didn't expect to win, expected a comfortable Liverpool win, so wasn't disappointed in that respect. But the sheer lack of composure on the ball, and inability to pass the ball accurately 10 yards was frightening. This was us back our very worst on the ball. Westwood summed it up perfectly when, in the second half, with no Liverpool players within a 10 yard radius of him, he simply hooked the ball forward in the general direction of the forwards as it dropped to him, with absolutely no thought to bring it down and look for a pass into feet.

Tarkowski was the only positive yesterday, who carried on his excellent start to the season in an otherwise rank defensive performance. That has to be Peiters last game now, he's a championship player, no more no less.

[SalisburyClaret]

Pope 7

Lowton 6
Tarkowski 8 right on top of his game
Mee 5
Pieters 5 lots of effort but has a tendency to dive in

Lennon 4 - one cross and 19 other touches in 90 odd minutes is not a satisfactory contribution
Westwood 7
Cork 7
McNeil 7

Wood 6
Barnes 6

[claretspice]

We won't be the only team made to look ordinary by this Liverpool team, and unfortunately a day when they get the big break of luck and gift them a goal is never going to be a day when we get a result against them.

Pope - 7 - A superb finger tip save to push Salah's drive onto the post, and a couple of good saves in the second half, but I thought he misjudged the flight of the ball for the first goal (admittedly in extenuating circumstances given the deflection of Wood and the gusty wind), and more than once I thought he looked a bit hesitant around his box.

Lowton - 4 - Absolutely glorious ball to set Wood free 5 minutes in, and it was all downhill from there. Defensively he was OK, but his use of the ball was way below the high standards he's set for himself.

Pieters - 5 - some harsh marks for him. He wasn't especially polished, and some of his defending was a bit last ditch, but the fella he was up against was Mo Salah for goodness sake, and overall he did pretty well against him.

Tarkowski - 8 - Gave the ball away a couple of times without being punished, but otherwise really excellent and showed his class.

Mee - 6 - Generally, he was his usual, reliable and determined self, and he takes some credit for the fact that for long periods, Liverpool weren't able to get a clear sight of Pope's goal. But the "but" is a whopper - you simply cannot give the ball away as slackly as he did in the area he did, against team's like Liverpool.

Cork - 7 - Good days's work. Ratted well, protected the centre halves, and used the ball generally pretty well.

Westwood - 6 - Not his tidiest days work, but found a few penetrating passes - most obviously to set Rodriguez clear late on, and got throught plenty of diligent work in midfield.

Lennon - 6 - Wasn't convinced by his defending first half - he seemed to be allowing Lowton to take the outside man whilst he filled inside, which is exactly the opposite of how we usually defend - but he used the ball pretty well and carried an intermittent threat.

McNeill - 7 - Had the better of Alexander Arnold once again, and used the ball well. Sure, he gave the ball away before their first with an attempted backheel, but crikey, we've got to give him licence to try things and to lose the ball every now and again.

Barnes - 5 - A few nice touches, notably to set Lennon away in the first half, but he's always struggled against VVD and this was no exception. Big shout out to the idiots who booed the decision to take him off - fact that we looked sharper in attack once he'd gone off suggested that Dyche knew what he was doing (which is no criticism of the battling efforts Barnes made).

Wood - 5 - Carried a periodic threat over the top and was a touch unlucky with his early chance when he didn't do a lot wrong.

Rodriguez - 6 - Offered a more mobile threat than Barnes and we looked more dangerous as a result. A bit unlucky not to score.


Not a lot to dwell on here. Liverpool and Manchester City are on a different plane to everyone else at the moment, and if City are the best possession football team that might have ever existed, Liverpool might be the best at winning the ball back that's ever existed. We certainly looked ragged at times, but generally (there were some exceptions) that was because Liverpool's sheer size, physicality and relentless drilling means they make every pass a tough pass. There are teams in this league who can bully us and plenty more who can out play us, but Liverpool might be the only one who can do both.

Even then, for 30 minutes this was most definitely a contest, until Liverpool got a huge slice of luck (and ruthlessly exploited us giving the ball away high up the pitch, and with both wide midfielders on our right; it was no coincidence it was Wood who was back filling in defensively - that's a classic example of how good in transition and sensing an opportunity Liverpool are) and we made a dreadful error. From then on, it was about two teams managing the game; us trying to avoid getting panned, and Liverpool making damn sure we couldn't build up any momentum.

One to park and move on from. It certainly won't define our season.

[quoonbeatz]

Had to keep your irrational dislike of Ashley under wraps recently.

Eh? Think you've got me mixed up with someone else as i hardly post on here anymore.

Barnes has been fantastic so far but he wasn't in it yesterday. He freely admits that VVD is the one defender whose head he's not been able to get inside.

[arise_sir_charge]

I've never done ratings, as I prefer to sit and enjoy the game rather than keep notes on every players contribution, but Mcneil cost us the game with a stupid back heal leading to the second goal, yet he's getting high marks, Mee is getting pelters, but if Mcneil hadn't lost the ball in the first place Mee wouldn't have been involved in that passage of play.

Complete nonsense!

We had complete control of the ball at the point Ben mee just handed it over.

[claretcarrot93]

Jonathan Northcroft's ratings from his report on the game in today's Sunday Times:

Burnley: Pope 7, Lowton 6, Tarkowski 6, Mee 7, Pieters 6, Lennon 6, Westwood 7, Cork 6, McNeil 5, Wood 6, Barnes 6 (Rodriguez 73min, 5)

Liverpool: Adrian 6, Alexander-Arnold 7, Matip 7, Van Dijk 7, Robertson 7, Henderson 7 (Oxlade-Chamberlain 71min, 5), Fabinho 8, Wijnaldum 6, Salah 7, Firmino 9 (Shaqiri 85min, 5), Mane 7 (Origi 85min, 5)

Posting as a reference for some of our fellow Clarets.

I'm not saying I'd have rated the same as the journalist. I'll concede he has seen more games than me, certainly over the past several seasons.

His report is headlined: Liverpool in cruise control as Firmino finishes off Burnley - I think this is "fair enough."

He gets paid for them ratings? He rated Mee above Tarkowski?

Again he gets paid for that?

[Hbclaret007]

We won't be the only team made to look ordinary by this Liverpool team, and unfortunately a day when they get the big break of luck and gift them a goal is never going to be a day when we get a result against them.

Pope - 7 - A superb finger tip save to push Salah's drive onto the post, and a couple of good saves in the second half, but I thought he misjudged the flight of the ball for the first goal (admittedly in extenuating circumstances given the deflection of Wood and the gusty wind), and more than once I thought he looked a bit hesitant around his box.

Lowton - 4 - Absolutely glorious ball to set Wood free 5 minutes in, and it was all downhill from there. Defensively he was OK, but his use of the ball was way below the high standards he's set for himself.

Pieters - 5 - some harsh marks for him. He wasn't especially polished, and some of his defending was a bit last ditch, but the fella he was up against was Mo Salah for goodness sake, and overall he did pretty well against him.

Tarkowski - 8 - Gave the ball away a couple of times without being punished, but otherwise really excellent and showed his class.

Mee - 6 - Generally, he was his usual, reliable and determined self, and he takes some credit for the fact that for long periods, Liverpool weren't able to get a clear sight of Pope's goal. But the "but" is a whopper - you simply cannot give the ball away as slackly as he did in the area he did, against team's like Liverpool.

Cork - 7 - Good days's work. Ratted well, protected the centre halves, and used the ball generally pretty well.

Westwood - 6 - Not his tidiest days work, but found a few penetrating passes - most obviously to set Rodriguez clear late on, and got throught plenty of diligent work in midfield.

Lennon - 6 - Wasn't convinced by his defending first half - he seemed to be allowing Lowton to take the outside man whilst he filled inside, which is exactly the opposite of how we usually defend - but he used the ball pretty well and carried an intermittent threat.

McNeill - 7 - Had the better of Alexander Arnold once again, and used the ball well. Sure, he gave the ball away before their first with an attempted backheel, but crikey, we've got to give him licence to try things and to lose the ball every now and again.

Barnes - 5 - A few nice touches, notably to set Lennon away in the first half, but he's always struggled against VVD and this was no exception. Big shout out to the idiots who booed the decision to take him off - fact that we looked sharper in attack once he'd gone off suggested that Dyche knew what he was doing (which is no criticism of the battling efforts Barnes made).

Wood - 5 - Carried a periodic threat over the top and was a touch unlucky with his early chance when he didn't do a lot wrong.

Rodriguez - 6 - Offered a more mobile threat than Barnes and we looked more dangerous as a result. A bit unlucky not to score.


Not a lot to dwell on here. Liverpool and Manchester City are on a different plane to everyone else at the moment, and if City are the best possession football team that might have ever existed, Liverpool might be the best at winning the ball back that's ever existed. We certainly looked ragged at times, but generally (there were some exceptions) that was because Liverpool's sheer size, physicality and relentless drilling means they make every pass a tough pass. There are teams in this league who can bully us and plenty more who can out play us, but Liverpool might be the only one who can do both.

Even then, for 30 minutes this was most definitely a contest, until Liverpool got a huge slice of luck (and ruthlessly exploited us giving the ball away high up the pitch, and with both wide midfielders on our right; it was no coincidence it was Wood who was back filling in defensively - that's a classic example of how good in transition and sensing an opportunity Liverpool are) and we made a dreadful error. From then on, it was about two teams managing the game; us trying to avoid getting panned, and Liverpool making damn sure we couldn't build up any momentum.

One to park and move on from. It certainly won't define our season.

I agree largely with Claretspice's measured assessment.
I still find it fantastic and unbelievable that we are able to play the champions of Europe at Turf Moor, having spent so many years watching us struggle in lower leagues! The amount of nonsense that is spouted on here by some so called 'Burnley fans' makes me wish they would just follow someone else. Constructive criticism is fair, but some people need to give their heads a good shake.

Up until the first goal, we were giving them a good game. Two avoidable goals and it could have been different. I would have expected Liverpool to find another gear in any case. Champions of Europe remember and streets ahead of most PL teams.

Let's regroup and look to take some points from Brighton and Norwich.

This is a great time to be a Claret - relish it!!

[NottsClaret]

Pope - 6

Lowton - 5

Tarkowski - 9 Looked like he should be partnering VVD, playing better than ever right now

Mee - 5 He's great until you give him a second to think about playing a pass

Pieters - 6 Thought he did well enough against Salah, it's not easy

Cork - 7 Probably just ahead of Westwood to keep his place if Drinkwater gets fit one day

Westwood - 6

Lennon - 5

McNeil - 6

Wood - 5

Barnes - 5 They both worked hard up front but may as well have been stood lighting VVD's cigars for him.



I'm in the camp that thought we did well until that fluke. You need all the luck against the top sides, and we didn't get it. Throw in a couple of errors and it's quickly a thumping. No complaints, by far the best team won but we'll probably play worse and take a few points over the season.

[beeholeclaret]

Pope - 6 - steady game and unlucky with the deflection and swirling wind for first goal

Lowton - 5 - made a few good interceptions in second half and made himself available - touch was poor though

Tarkowski - 8 - commanding in defence with usual share of blocks, tackles and headers. Looked good moving forward with the ball - should do this more often.

Mee - 5 - big fan of Ben Mee and what he brings to this team. Serious blunder for 2nd goal saw the game go away from us.

Pieters - 6 - got stuck into Salah in first half and allowed him little room. Made a couple of good breaks in second half to no avail.

Cork - 6 - seems to be playing a bit better than last season and with a bit more zip

Westwood - 6 - buzzed around and always there to try the first time ball in behind the defence. Too many are being overhit at the moment and it looks worse as forward line have litte pace.

Lennon - 6 - had a decent game in my opinion and always looked interested. Good cross in first half almost led to a goal

McNeil - 6 - some good runs in first half though little end product. Free kicks and corners were predictable and little threat today to the Liverpool defence

Wood - 5 - started well but once VVD and co settled there was little opportunity to shine

Barnes - 5 - not his day - a couple of first half openings but scuffed his shots when in similar positions this season he has already found the net. Big fan of Barnesy but wasnt happening today. Can anyone remember him scoring a header? Just a thought - he's a big feller and would have thought he would notch a few times with his head?

Jay Rod - 6 - few good runs and nearly scored late on - hopefully his fitness levels are building up.

[Stalbansclaret]

Re the question about Barnes scoring with a header he did so just a handful of games ago in the home game with Arsenal at the end of last season when JBG chipped the ball back in from the left hand side in front of the JM stand. Off the top of my head can also remember a good near post header from a Stanislas cross at Charlton shortly after he signed for us.

[Tall Paul]

Barnes has 5 headed goals in the PL.

[Falcon]

Pope 8
Lowton 7
Pieters 7
Mee 6
Tarkowski 8
Lennon 6
Cork 6
Westwood 6
McNeil 8
Wood 6
Barnes 6

Rodriguez 6

Some incredibly harsh marks on here. We'll play worse than that and win matches against lesser opponents this season.

[Paul Waine]

He gets paid for them ratings? He rated Mee above Tarkowski?

Again he gets paid for that?

Hi carrot, I guess he doesn't get paid if his boss doesn't think he's good at his job?

Do you prefer Paul Joyce's ratings in Monday's Times?

Burnley (4-4-2) N Pope 6 — M Lowton 5, J Tarkowski 5, B Mee 4, E Pieters 5 — A Lennon 5, J Cork 5, A Westwood 5, D McNeil 5 — C Wood 5, A Barnes 5 (sub: J Rodriguez 73min).

Liverpool (4-3-3) Adrián 7 — T Alexander-Arnold 7, J Matip 8, V Van Dijk 8, A Robertson 7 — J Henderson 7 (sub: A Oxlade-Chamberlain 71), Fabinho 8, G Wijnaldum 7 — M Salah 6, R Firmino 8 (sub: X Shaqiri 85), S Mané 7 (sub: D Origi 85).

[claretcarrot93]

Hi carrot, I guess he doesn't get paid if his boss doesn't think he's good at his job?

Do you prefer Paul Joyce's ratings in Monday's Times?

Burnley (4-4-2) N Pope 6 — M Lowton 5, J Tarkowski 5, B Mee 4, E Pieters 5 — A Lennon 5, J Cork 5, A Westwood 5, D McNeil 5 — C Wood 5, A Barnes 5 (sub: J Rodriguez 73min).

Liverpool (4-3-3) Adrián 7 — T Alexander-Arnold 7, J Matip 8, V Van Dijk 8, A Robertson 7 — J Henderson 7 (sub: A Oxlade-Chamberlain 71), Fabinho 8, G Wijnaldum 7 — M Salah 6, R Firmino 8 (sub: X Shaqiri 85), S Mané 7 (sub: D Origi 85).

Just the Mee and Tarks ratings from the first one. Even a blind man could see that Tarks was much better than Mee.

[Lancasterclaret]

Forgot all about this

Horribly unlucky for the first, then terrible error for the 2nd and you can't give Liverpool that kind of chance. Up till then I thought we were well in the game but after that we really struggled

Pope 7
Lowton 5 - really poor ball control on numerous occasions. Can't do that
Mee 6 - terrible pass
Tarks 7 - looked very solid
Pieters 6 - thought he did well v Salah
Lennon 6 - did well
Westwood 6 - ok
Cork 7 - thought he was very good
McNeil 6 - did well
Barnes 5 - nothing out of VVD
Wood 6 - bit more, but probably needs to bang that first chance in

Subs
Jay 6