Impregnable Fortress

As a Premier League veteran, Crystal Palace had finished only 14th in the table last season under former England national team manager Allardyce, neither high nor low, muddling along in mid-table.

In the new season, the club fired Allardyce and brought in the young Dutch manager, Frank de Boer.

So far, the results did not seem very promising.

In the first round of the league, Crystal Palace were beaten 0-3 at home by newly promoted Huddersfield.

A disastrous start, with all dignity lost.

For this trip to Anfield, Frank de Boer struck an extremely humble tone at the pre-match press conference.

First, he lavished praise on Klopp. "Klopp is one of the best coaches in football today. Under his leadership, Liverpool have played phenomenal football."

Then he went all out in praising Chen Anno. "Annuo is the kind of player who can change a match by himself. Any defensive system needs to be extremely cautious against him."

Finally, the Dutch manager sighed and said, half-jokingly but half-seriously:

"If my team can come away from Anfield unscathed, that will count as a success."

His stance could not have been lower.

But the fans were having none of it.

"Come away unscathed? Dream on. Do you think Anfield is a place you can just walk away from in one piece?"

"Crystal Palace lost 0-3 to a newly promoted side in the first round, and now they want points from Liverpool?"

"De Boer has surrendered before the match even started."

This was their home opener of the new season.

Even if you got down on your knees and called them daddy, you would still get beaten up.

An hour before kick-off, Anfield had already become a sea of red.

More than fifty thousand Reds supporters poured into the stadium and sang "You'll Never