AFTER an Alexander Isak half-volley set Newcastle towards victory, Mohamed Salah put his hand on his hips and trudged silently back upfield.
To a man, his team-mates did the same. Even skipper Virgil van Dijk was unable to raise a shout of defiance or conjure up a gesture of encouragement.
It was an empty response in an empty performance devoid of all the things that have turned the Premier League title race into a Liverpool lap of honour - dynamism, determination, imagination, intelligence, physicality, fight.
Yes, if you had told Arne Slot how his first season as Liverpool manager would pan out, he would have signed for it. But he would not have signed for a display as limp as this in a Wembley final.
Celebrating a tackle, or a block, has become a thing. The outstanding Joelinton was at it midway through the first half after tracking back and dispossessing Jarell Quansah.
His roar was a loud symbol of the difference between these two sides.
In the 52 minutes it took for Newcastle to take a two-goal lead - the opener a thumping header from Dan Burn, the second from Isak - they were so much more intense, so much more committed, so much more aggressive, it was startling.
The champions-elect were, up until the final throes, a passive shambles of a side. Clearly, there was a physical issue in play, that extra-time against a supreme...
To a man, his team-mates did the same. Even skipper Virgil van Dijk was unable to raise a shout of defiance or conjure up a gesture of encouragement.
It was an empty response in an empty performance devoid of all the things that have turned the Premier League title race into a Liverpool lap of honour - dynamism, determination, imagination, intelligence, physicality, fight.
Yes, if you had told Arne Slot how his first season as Liverpool manager would pan out, he would have signed for it. But he would not have signed for a display as limp as this in a Wembley final.
Celebrating a tackle, or a block, has become a thing. The outstanding Joelinton was at it midway through the first half after tracking back and dispossessing Jarell Quansah.
His roar was a loud symbol of the difference between these two sides.
In the 52 minutes it took for Newcastle to take a two-goal lead - the opener a thumping header from Dan Burn, the second from Isak - they were so much more intense, so much more committed, so much more aggressive, it was startling.
The champions-elect were, up until the final throes, a passive shambles of a side. Clearly, there was a physical issue in play, that extra-time against a supreme...
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Daily Record (Digital) - 1 Issue, March 17, 2025