David Luiz scored the most David Luiz goal against Liverpool. The combination of awareness, impulsivity and risk necessary to scoop a free kick from your teammate is pure Luiz.
Imagine the tweets, takes and stories we would all be writing if David Luiz had missed his free kick against Liverpool. Willian set the ball and was standing over it. Everyone on the pitch – Blue and Red alike – was watching the young Brazilian prepare another of his trademark curlers around the wall.
Mark Clattenburg blows his whistle. Simon Mignolet adjusts his wall. And out of nowhere, David Luiz flies past Willian and blasts a souvenir into the Anfield’s upper decks.
Reckless! Undisciplined! Immature! He just cost Chelsea the league!! … but instead, he is a hero on the night.
Nearly everything David Luiz does is a heart-in-mouth moment for his critics. Where his fans see a ball-playing centre-back, his critics see an adventurer who does not understand the fundamental role and attributes of a defender. For every 50/50 tackle, take-on or aerial ball he ventures well forward to attempt, Luiz apologists see desire and ambition. His critics, on the other hand, see selfishness and an absolute lack of tactical and positional awareness.
Luiz’s gamble on the free kick was far from 50/50. Assessments of open play have plenty of room for disagreement in terms of risk, potential outcomes and decision-making. The “what if’s” and “yes, but’s” are endless. Poaching Willian’s free kick has no such ambiguity.
If Luiz had failed, he would have been an absolute laughing-stock. And rightfully so. Antonio Conte would have been furious. And rightfully so.
"Sometimes you need to try a surprise. I’m not in the best position to take free-kicks because my knee is hurting and I can’t train every day, but in a game you need to see the opportunity. I’m pleased I scored. – Evening Standard"
But the high-risk gamble paid off, and David Luiz is the lovable wacky hero proudly back in Blue. This is the price Chelsea has paid and will pay whenever Luiz takes the pitch. He can give you the lead in a flash, and he can cause it to be taken away.
Luiz has been uncharacteristically restrained this season. Whether it is what he learned at Paris Saint-Germain, what Antonio Conte demands or simply the maturity of age, he has found a few settings between 0 and 11.
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At the end of the day, he is still David Luiz. And when his true self comes out, he creates moments that go to one or the other of the highlight reel or the blooper footage.