Liverpool: Alisson’s clever FA Cup final tactic to ensure Mendy couldn’t repeat shoot-out antics

Alisson emerged as one of Liverpool’s heroes as the Reds defeated Chelsea on penalties in Saturday’s FA Cup final.

The Brazilian goalkeeper saved Mason Mount’s spot-kick, leaving Kostas Tsimikas to seal Liverpool’s second trophy of the season.

Jurgen Klopp’s side, who also defeated Chelsea on penalties in the Carabao Cup final, subsequently remain on course to secure a historic quadruple.

While Alisson has already been praised for his role in the penalty shoot-out, and deservedly so, the South American shot-stopper made an even bigger contribution than many fans may have initially realised.

Per The Mirror, it was noted that Alisson hand-delivered the ball to each Liverpool penalty taker to prevent Edouard Mendy from playing mind games.

Goalkeepers often try to gain an advantage during penalty shoot-outs by using various tactics.

From eccentric goal-line antics to trash-talking, like we saw from Argentina’s Emiliano Martinez during the 2021 Copa America, the sight of ‘keepers trying to psyche out their opponents isn’t uncommon.

Back in February, the aforementioned Mendy was seen attempting to get into the heads of Egypt’s penalty takers during the Africa Cup of Nations final while playing for Senegal.

Senegal eventually lifted the trophy but Mendy’s antics hadn’t gone unnoticed by Alisson and Liverpool’s coaching staff.

So every time Alisson faced a penalty, his first action was to grab the ball, rather than take his position on the byline.

Then, when each of Liverpool’s players made the dreaded walk to the penalty spot, they were greeted by Alisson rather than Mendy.

A small thing in the grand scheme of things, perhaps, but it’s the little details that win clubs trophies.

To further back up this point, Klopp paid tribute