"People try to be cute when there’s no need to be cute" - Thierry Henry slams Real Madrid star's showing in loss to Liverpool

Pundit Thierry Henry has hit out at Real Madrid star Vinicius Jr over his performance in the UEFA Champions League game against Liverpool. The Spanish giants suffered a 1-0 loss at Anfield, losing to the Reds at this stage for the second successive season.

Henry was on punditry duty with CBS Sports and appeared to have been disappointed by what he saw from Vinicius Jr, who failed to register a single attempt on goal. He called out the 25-year-old for making life too easy for Conor Bradley, who was tasked with marking him, due to his reluctance to have a go at the Liverpool right-back.

"I do not understand it. You have to play with what’s in front of you, you have to play the moment. And even if there’s nobody in the box, as you said, 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 I don’t know, 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. "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. 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? I just don’t get it at times", he said (via metro.co.uk).

Liverpool did most of the questioning in the game while Real Madrid's star-studded attack appeared to lack any bite throughout the game. Los Blancos had to rely on goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois to keep the Reds at bay for much of the game before their rearguard was breached, eventually.

Like Vinicius Jr, Kylian Mbappe has a rare off day for Real Madrid, as he also failed to register a shot on target in the game. As a result, Arne Slot's side kept a second clean sheet in as many games, picking up a second successive win.

Liverpool edge Real Madrid in close Anfield contest

Liverpool claimed a vital 1-0 win over Real Madrid to become the first side to defeat the Spanish giants in the UEFA Champions League this season. The Reds picked up their third win in the competition to go level on points with their opponents for the night.

Real Madrid had goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois to thank for a scoreless first half, with the Belgium international making four saves. They survived a penalty call in the first half, as the VAR overruled the on-field decision to award a spot-kick for an offence by Aurelien Tchouameni.

The Premier League champions finally got their breakthrough after an hour of probing, with Alexis Mac Allister heading home an excellent delivery from Dominik Szoboszlai. Liverpool held on to their advantage and claimed all three points against Los Blancos for a second successive season.

Edited by Sulayman Salahudeen