Player Focus: Liverpool Visit Presents Bolasie With Chance to Correct Poor Form
Every side, regardless of their stature in world football, has a bogey team. That one club that, despite form and league position steps their game up when the going toe-to-toe with a particular opponent. For Liverpool recently, that team happens to be Crystal Palace. ‘The Miracle of Crystanbul’ in May last year was the final nail in the coffin that was Liverpool’s title bid, with the Eagles winning the subsequent two league meetings between the pairing 3-1.
Of course, those back-to-back victories came with Brendan Rodgers at the helm in the season following Luis Suarez’s move to Barcelona. Factor in Daniel Sturridge’s injury woes and it came as little shock that the Reds stumbled. However, with a change of manager at the Reds helm in the form of Jurgen Klopp, Liverpool have every right to be confident of ending this hoodoo against Palace. Yet, there will be a nagging sensation that an upset is indeed possible.
On home turf, Liverpool come into the fixture as favourites and understandably so. Klopp is yet to taste defeat since taking charge of the Reds, overseeing victory in each of their last three competitive outings, including a 3-1 win at Chelsea. A 5000 mile round trip to Russia on Thursday night is hardly ideal preparation for the Merseyside outfit, but with their strength-in-depth, they boast the personnel to secure maximum points on Sunday.
However, the Palace players indeed up their game against Liverpool, particularly Dwight Gayle and Yannick Bolasie. It’s the latter, though, who needs a big performance this coming weekend to kickstart his season. By his usual high standards, Bolasie has flattered to decisive in the Premier League this term. His WhoScored rating (6.74) is his lowest in England’s top tier. He isn’t the sole problem for Palace’s slow start to the campaign by any means, with the Eagles bagging just 12 league goals thus far - one of the worst returns in the Premier League - but the 26-year-old’s disappointing form has certainly hindered the south London side.
One league goal and zero assists is indeed a poor return for a player in his position and has hampered the Eagles’ chances of bettering their 10th placed finish last season. The lack of contribution is certainly having an adverse effect on Palace, who rely on his creativity in the final third. A key pass played every 143.8 minutes is his worst in the top flight of English football, this coming despite Bolasie averaging a successful dribble more frequently (every 30 minutes) than the previous season (31.2 minutes).
This could well be as a result of Alan Pardew’s insistence that the Democratic Republic of Congo international chance his luck more regularly than in recent years. His minutes per shot return has increased with each passing season, the current campaign his best (34.2 minutes). However, while his minutes per shot return has increased, as has his minutes per shot from outside the box, with this season also at its highest (one every 55.3 minutes). This suggests that while Bolasie can work the angle to fire a shot at goal, he would be better suited utilising his dribbling ability to punch a hole through the opposition defence to create a better chance for himself or teammates rather than taking pot shots from distance.
The trip to Liverpool, however, is the ideal chance for him to return to his best form. Only against Sunderland (8.20) has he gained a better average WhoScored rating than against Liverpool (7.67) of teams currently plying their trade in England’s top tier. Of his 10 league assists in the last three seasons, two have come against Liverpool, while one of his two WhoScored man of the match awards have been courtesy of a plaudit drawing performance in a meeting with the Reds, who struggle to limit Bolasie’s influence when they face Palace.
Given Palace’s form on the road this season - Pardew’s side have won nine of a possible 15 points away from home thus far - Liverpool need to approach the match with caution, even if the Eagles have struggled to consistently hit the back of the net. The trip to Anfield, though, presents Bolasie with the opportunity to correct his floundering form in the bid to help his side come away from Anfield with all three points.
The lightening quick winger has established himself as a key player at Selhurst Park following his arrival from Bristol City in 2012, though his form has left a lot to be desired. Bolasie needs to up his performances for the benefit of the team, with Sunday as good a time as any to start.
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