Liverpool 3-0 Southampton - 5 Talking Points and Tactical Analysis, Premier League 2018-19

#3 Southampton's midfield didn't do enough

Romeu and Hojbjerg were overrun

Mark Hughes brought in Oriol Romeu to anchor the Saints' midfield in the hope that he would provide the side with some much-needed steel in the middle of the park.

Clearly, Romeu was there to cut off the space between the lines for a Liverpool side that love to work the ball intricately in the final third. But along with Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Mario Lemina, Romeu could do little, as Liverpool played their way through the Saints' midfield at will, especially in the first half.

The biggest indictment of the midfield failure for Southampton was the fact that Shaqiri ran the show in the first half. Given the position the Swiss was playing in, it was his exact threat that Romeu was brought in to nullify, but he really could not do much.

The cohesiveness and understanding of the Liverpool players shone through, as even a crowded midfield could not get Southampton the control that they would have desired. It also didn't help the plan that they conceded within the first ten minutes, which meant that they had to open themselves up a little more to get anything from the game.