Jurgen Klopp was predicted to make changes for the visit of relegated Huddersfield, but Liverpool’s German shepherd let his big dogs off the leash as the hopeless Terriers were thrashed 5-0.
Barcelona in the Champions League may be on the horizon but the Premier League remains the Reds’ priority and they showed plenty of bark with Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane both netting braces in a comfortable win.
Naby Keita got the ball rolling, showing plenty of bite as he chased down Huddersfield’s defence to force an error and then finish from Salah’s pass.
Mane rose to head in Andrew Robertson’s cross before Salah chipped in to make it 3-0 at the break. They continued to doggedly eat away at Manchester City’s superior goal difference in the second half with Mane heading in his second and Robertson then setting up Salah to finish it off.
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— Liverpool FC (@LFC) 26 April 2019
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LIVERPOOL (4-3-3)
Alisson 6: Little to do, beat away Bacuna’s bullet. Huddersfield huffed and puffed but gave him little else to do. Distribution near flawless.
Trent Alexander-Arnold 9: Unplayable. Tormented Erik Durm and Terrance Kongolo. Set up Salah’s first and unlucky to see his stunning cross to Sturridge disallowed for offside. Two key passes. Four tackles jointly led Liverpool.
Dejan Lovren 7: Kept the curious visitors at bay. Busy but rarely looked troubled as partnership with Van Dijk continues to flourish. Surprisingly Liverpool’s most fouled (3) player.
Virgil van Dijk 6: Home fans gasped when he went down early in the second half. Won team high five aerials.
Andrew Robertson 9: Excellent season continued with a typically inch-perfect cross for Mane to gleefully head home. The laid Salah’s second on a plate for him. Two of four key passes. Imperious.
Jordan Henderson 6: Fired over as Liverpool ran riot. Delivered cross to Mane for his fine second. Two key passes.
Georginio Wijnaldum 7: Went about his work diligently as always. Four tackles, three interceptions and two clearances highlighted his tigerish attitude against the Terriers.
Naby Keita 7: Fantastic press and charge down yielded the opening goal, which he side-footed home with aplomb. Excellent in dispossessing Mounie when through on goal. He didn’t let up with four tackles, three interceptions.
Mohamed Salah 9: First to get to 20 Premier League goals this season with a cool finish over stranded Lossl. Looked hungry to add to that tally with eight shots and completed the scoring. Four key passes although overall 71 per cent pass success rate was wasteful.
Daniel Sturridge 6: Took advantage of a rare start to keep Terriers’ defence busy. Unlucky not to score after converting Alexander-Arnold’s cross, from an offside position.
Sadio Mane 8: Stooped to head in the second, then stole a chance off Sturridge’s boot and lofted it over the bar. A second header was impressively dispatched past Lossl.
SUBS
Xherdan Shaqiri 7: Lovely movement and pass to set Robertson away for his assist to make it 5-0. Not much time to impress but he did, immensely.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain 6: What a sight for Reds to see him back. Looked sharp too, cutting through away defence as he almost made an instant contribution.
