On a hazy, dreamy afternoon at Selhurst Park, all soft sun and soft air, Liverpool produced something that seemed to fit the day, an exercise in control and the problems of control. A 1-0 victory means they will stay at the top of the league heading towards the end of October. This is a high‑functioning entity now. They have a good manager, good players, an excellent central midfield and the fewest goals conceded in the league.
At the same time Liverpool also somehow ended up hanging on at times in the second half of a game that was like an expertly staged act of euthanasia where the corpse inexplicably starts waking up after an hour trying to have a chat about things.
