PLAYER RATINGS: LIVERPOOL 1-2 LEEDS UNITED

Liverpool fell to another embarrassing defeat, as Leeds United left Anfield with all three points following a well deserved 2-1 victory. This marks the first time Liverpool have suffered back to back league defeats under Jürgen Klopp’s tenure. Here are player ratings from the encounter.

Alisson – 5

Poor anticipation for the backpass and a slow reaction once it was played. Good save at his near post from Harrison’s drive. Got fingertips to Summerville’s strike but not enough to keep it out.

Alexander-Arnold – 4

Played with no urgency. Lackadaisical throughout. Twice early on he had a chance to find a cross for a waiting teammate in the box and he hit his man both times. I literally don’t remember the last time he provided an assist. Still, taking him off means you lose any sense of creativity from the right flank.

Gomez – 3

Oscillating between rock solid and ridiculous on a week to week basis. Played so many suicidal passes today, including the one that handed them a gift of an opening goal. Backs off every attacker that runs at him. He’s lost his place in the side with that performance.

Van Dijk – 4.5

Not as commanding as he can be. Players are able to hold him off with relative ease of late. Another who can be guilty of backing off an onrushing attacker. His passing game was side to side as Leeds were switched on to his trademark diagonals. Not great for their winner.

Robertson – 4.5

Didn’t have anyone ahead of him to combine with on the wing and suffered for it. Got the assist for Salah’s goal with a hooked cross. Stunted second half when the impressive Summerville switched to his flank. Couldn’t live with him. Gave the ball away a lot, and his deliveries got worse as the game wore on. Thought he looked knackered late on but we didn’t see Tsimikas at all.

Fabinho – 5

Too many times they broke through midfield and you were left wondering where the defensive shield was. He woke up and put in a few strong tackles. His passing was uninspiring. Hooked on the hour.

Thiago – 6.5

Best player in red tonight. Some lovely turns in midfield to open up play, with his usual wonderful array of passing on show. Lost the ball a few times early on but was tigerish in the tackle to win it back.

Elliott – 3

Shocking tonight. Nothing he did went right. Ball kept rolling off him into touch. Most of his attempted forward passes went straight to a white shirt. A poor night at the office and the manager left him out there for an hour. He’s played so many minutes recently and looked jaded all game.

Firmino – 4

Not as influential. His touch wasn’t as crisp and he lost the ball a number of times as a result. Got on the end of some good chances, the clearest of which was a header in injury time a few yards from goal. He placed it too close to Meslier, allowing the Frenchman to make the save. Another who looked shattered in the closing stages.

Darwin – 4.5

Missed two absolute sitters. First one he should have lobbed first time over a stranded Meslier but decided to go round him only to be dispossessed by the French goalkeeper. Second chance was meat and drink for a striker of his calibre.

He just had to lift it over the onrushing Meslier but hit it straight at him. He lacks composure in key moments. Pulled out a top drawer save from Meslier when he aimed for the top corner after cutting in. Created good chances for his fellow attackers. At the end of the day, those misses proved costly.

Salah – 5.5

Marvellous finish to pull the side level. He could have been put off by Fabinho jumping for the ball right infront of him but he kept his eyes on the prize and cushioned it home. Second half he was awful. Blazed wildly into the stands after mazy dribbles with players waiting for a pass on two different occasions.

Substitutes

Henderson – 5

Tried to step up the tempo when he came on. Almost snuck in at the backpost to direct Darwin’s header into the bottom corner, but again Meslier made the save. One pitiful volley into the stands killed attacking momentum in injury time.

Jones – 3

Waste of a sub. Dwelled on the ball too long. He’s been doing that since he broke into the first team. Two years on and he’s still making the same mistakes. Frustrating cameo.

Milner – N/A

I was flabbergasted when he was brought on in place of Trent when we were chasing a goal. Him and Jones had Gnonto cornered but still stood off him to allow him find a teammate in the leadup to their winning goal.

Jürgen Klopp

Made only one change from the side that started in Amsterdam. An early gift saw his side concede the first goal in a league game for the eighth time this season. That needs fixing. Could have been quicker with his alterations from the bench.

Surprised we didn’t see any of Carvalho, Tsimikas or Oxlade-Chamberlain late on. The options aren’t great at the minute but he told the world and his dog that he was happy with his squad in the summer so….