PLAYER RATINGS: NEWCASTLE 0-1 LIVERPOOL

Liverpool went top of the table this afternoon with a 1-0 win over Newcastle United. The Reds dominated from start to finish and should have won by a more comfortable scoreline but for some wasteful finishing. Here are player ratings from the game.

Alisson – 7

Didn’t have much to do till late on when he held onto Guimaraes’ strike. Did make another fantastic one on one stop but Wood had strayed offside. He was assured in possession and aided the buildup play with some terrific passes.

Gomez – 8.5

Thought he was superb. Shut down any inroads down his flank and posed a creative threat going forward. He burst past Joelinton a couple of times and found a red shirt in the crowded box. One such pickout should have been finished off by Mané. He defended so well, always there to intercept when they threatened to create something.

Matip – 8

Defended well when left one on one. Got a foot in a couple of times to halt Saint-Maximin. Gave the ball away sloppily once or twice but overall it was an accomplished performance.

Van Dijk – 8

The big man commanded the backline to machine like efficiency when setting the offside trap. It was truly a joy to watch how in sync the whole backline was. They knew when to drop and when to push high and it worked like clockwork.

Robertson – 7

Very quiet first half. Didn’t venture forward much. Seeing as it was his third start in six days and he was up against the pacy Almiron, it’s understandable. Second half he got a bit more adventurous and should have done much better when the ball broke to him with Dubravka stranded. He made up for a below par display with an absolutely crucial tackle in the box to halt Murphy. That tackle in injury time was everything.

Henderson – 8

Kept the ball moving well. Sat at the base of midfield and did his job. Whipped a delightful cross that saw Jota almost double the lead. Once again dependable on what was his 50th appearance of the season. Poor free kick first half which got Trent laughing on the bench.

Keita – 8.5

Match winner today. Took his goal like a seasoned striker as he showed such composure to sell Dubravka the dummy before slotting past two covering defenders on the goalline. He battled well throughout and showed the other side of his game. He sent a shot whistling past the post early on and played Diaz through with a lovely through ball.

Milner – 8

It was a slow start but the veteran settled into it. He gave the ball away cheaply and won it back with a trademark crunching tackle which started the move for the goal. Second half he was much better. He played two lovely balls over the top for Jota and on another day could be walking away with a pair of assists.

Diaz – 7.5

Was a handful on the right wing before switching to his more natural side on the left when Salah came on. He played well but could have scored a hat trick today. Needs to be much more clinical than that. Visibly tired in the final quarter of the game. Linked up well with Robertson late on.

Jota – 7.5

Full of running today. Set up the goal with a cute through ball into Keita who did the rest. He’s another who could have been more clinical today. Twice he was through on goal and both times he went for power instead of precision. He could have even squared it to Diaz for a tap in. Played well though, and that free kick he won at the end basically ended the game.

Mané – 5.5

Back on the left wing today and he struggled. Looked weak on the ball and missed two gilt edged chances. First one was set up by Diaz on the break and Sadio just passed it straight to Dubravka. Second was a Gomez cutback and he stabbed it wide of the near post.

Substitutes

Fabinho – 5.5

Nutmegged by Saint-Maximin who then ran at the defence before playing Wood through. Thankfully it came to nothing. Terrible free kick at the end.

Salah – 6

His first touch was a glorious ball over the top for Diaz to chase, and he almost got on the end of his deflected shot at the backpost but for a brilliant clearance by Targett. Salah then faded really. He gave the ball away cheaply a few times and was overrun the ball when sent through on goal by Diaz.

Thiago – N/A

Brought a bit of calm in midfield. Caught wrong side of Guimaraes a few times.

Jürgen Klopp

The gaffer made five changes to the side that beat Villareal on Wednesday as he rotated his side after an intense period. Gomez and Matip came in for Alexander-Arnold and Konaté at the back. Keita and Milner then took the place of Thiago and Fabinho in midfield, with Jota replacing Salah in attack.

His side played well throughout and carved the Newcastle defence open almost at will. Several missed chances left the door open but they held on. The subs came on at the right time and all played their part in the end. What a huge win this could prove to be. Very gritty.