Pundit Thierry Henry has criticized Real Madrid star Vinicius Jr following the UEFA Champions League clash against Liverpool. The Spanish giants suffered a 1-0 defeat at Anfield, marking their second consecutive season falling to the Reds at this stage of the competition.
Henry, who was on punditry duty with CBS Sports, expressed disappointment with Vinicius Jr’s performance. The 25-year-old failed to register a single attempt on goal and was singled out for making things too easy for Liverpool right-back Conor Bradley, who was assigned to mark him.
“I do not understand it. You have to play with what’s in front of you, you have to play the moment,” Henry said. “And even if there’s nobody in the box, at least the opposing team has dropped 30 yards back, and then you can give the ball to your midfielder, who might have a strike from outside the box. But sometimes people try to be cute when there’s no need to be cute. If there is space, just give the ball, recycling the ball. Sometimes it’s too scripted.”
Henry continued to analyze Vinicius Jr’s approach in the game, pointing out a specific moment early on. “You have an opportunity at the beginning—for example, Vinicius Jr had Conor Bradley for the first five to seven minutes, and then he let him breathe. Why do you let him breathe? Have a go until he gets a yellow card and then he can’t defend in the same way, but that didn’t happen.”
He described a key sequence: “When we watched the game, Vinicius Jr received the ball in a one-on-one after a good battle in the first five minutes against Conor Bradley, and he passed it back to his left-back to receive it back. And now it was a one-vs-three. Then he attacked alone against the three of them, and I thought, wait, do the math. You had a one-on-one, try to see what you can do with that. Why do you move the ball back so it comes back to you and you can play a one-vs-three?”
Throughout the match, Liverpool were the more probing side, while Real Madrid’s star-studded attack repeatedly lacked cutting edge. Los Blancos relied heavily on goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois, who made several crucial saves to keep the Reds at bay for much of the game before ultimately conceding.
Like Vinicius Jr, Kylian Mbappe had a rare off day for Real Madrid, failing to register a shot on target. As a result, Liverpool’s disciplined performance helped them keep a second clean sheet in as many games, securing back-to-back victories.
### Liverpool Edges Real Madrid in a Tight Anfield Contest
Liverpool secured a crucial 1-0 victory over Real Madrid, becoming the first team to defeat the Spanish giants in the UEFA Champions League this season. The Reds notched their third win in the competition, bringing them level on points with Real Madrid in the group.
In the first half, Real Madrid’s goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois was instrumental, making four important saves to keep the match scoreless. The visitors also survived a penalty scare early on when VAR overturned an on-field call awarding a spot-kick for an incident involving Aurelien Tchouameni.
Liverpool finally broke the deadlock after about an hour, as Alexis Mac Allister headed home an excellent delivery from Dominik Szoboszlai. The Premier League champions then held firm to preserve their lead and secure all three points against Los Blancos for the second consecutive season.
https://www.sportskeeda.com/football/news-people-try-cute-there-s-need-cute-thierry-henry-slams-real-madrid-star-s-showing-loss-liverpool
