Image Credits: Imago Images
Jeremie Frimpong has said what all Liverpool fans are feeling after Conor Bradley’s performance vs Vinicius Jr. on Tuesday night.
Bradley did not simply manage Vinicius -he suffocated him.
The Liverpool fullback won a series of crucial duels in the opening exchanges, establishing early dominance and forcing the Brazilian into uncomfortable positions where his usual fluidity and threat were neutralized.
By the end of the first half, Vinicius had become increasingly peripheral to Real Madrid’s attacking plans.
Bradley vs Real Madrid Figure
Tackles 3
Ground Duels Won 7/11 (64%)
Interceptions 1
Recoveries 7
Dribbled Past 2
Clearances 2
He covered ground intelligently, intercepted dangerous passes intended for Vinicius, and when pressed into a one-versus-one scenario, he consistently emerged victorious.
What made Bradley’s display particularly noteworthy was the absence of extravagance or controversy.
He did not commit desperate fouls, nor did he receive any yellow cards or close calls from the referee. Instead, his defensive work was characterized by positioning so precise and decision-making so assured that Vinicius rarely found himself in genuinely threatening positions.
Indeed, Bradley limited the Brazilian to just 9 touches in the box and 0 shots on goal.
And taking to Instagram, Jeremie Frimpong posted under Conor Bradley’s post of the game, writing: “Talk about locking someone”
Ryan Gravenberch commented “too good” while Hugo Ekitike simply said “thank you”.
Meanwhile, speaking after the game, Arne Slot was likewise full of praise for the Northern Ireland international:
“Conor was outstanding. It was very nice. Last season he was outstanding against Real Madrid but he had to go off after 80 minutes because of an injury,” said the Dutchman.
“Now, three days after he played 90 minutes against Villa, he again played 90 minutes with incredible intensity against Vinicius.”
“I told the players before the game, they have scored 26 goals in La Liga and Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius have 24 goal contributions together.”
“So if you want to have any chance of winning a game, you should defend your set-pieces well because that’s a way teams score, but great individuals can score goals as well and these two definitely can. Conor defended very good against Vinicius.”
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