Darren Bent says Leeds United set the blueprint for how to play against Liverpool.
Aston Villa thrashed the Premier League champions 7-2 on Sunday in a stunning day of football that also saw Manchester United hit for six.
Liverpool’s shaky defence brought to mind their opening-day 4-3 victory against the Whites - and Bent believes that game has shown teams how to play against Jurgen Klopp’s side.
"Look at Leeds, first game of the season," Bent told talkSPORT.
"They went there with no fear, I know they lost but they scored three goals and had a number of opportunities.
"I think that kind of shed the fear a little bit, everyone was like ‘okay, maybe we can attack Liverpool and get something from it’.
"That performance from Aston Villa was crazy, they were clinical in front of goal and could have had a couple more.
"What Jurgen Klopp said, I agree with some of it as some of the goals were of their own doing.
"For me, Liverpool are still a top, top team, but it was a crazy day of football and defensively they weren’t good enough for me.
"You don’t expect to see that from a Liverpool back four."
Bent was also impressed with how Marcelo Bielsa’s side performed in their 1-1 draw with Manchester City at the weekend.
He said: "Man City picked up a point against Leeds but Leeds were phenomenal by the way.
"Energy, getting in Man City’s face, especially after going 1-0 down and Man City dominating for the first 15 minutes.
"Leeds were sensational after that.
"I think Leeds will do that to a lot of teams this season, that’s not going to be a first."
