Liverpool clinched three more points and kept a clean sheet to firmly hold on to top spot in the Premier League, with the 2-0 win over Aston Villa proving to be quite the occasion.
Mohamed Salah doing what he does best and Darwin Nunez scoring the hardest of his three clear chances, it was quite the night on Saturday as the Reds moved five clear at the top.
The international break, annoyingly, awaits but at least we have plenty to shout about while we wait for club football to return.
Here, Joanna Durkan (@JoannaDurkan_) and Matt Ladson (@mattladson), who were both at Anfield, discuss the positives and very few negatives from the win, plus Salah’s ongoing contract situation.
The good…
JOANNA: It was not long after getting to the ground that word got around that Brighton had equalised, and then just moments later that they were in front – not a bad way to start the night!
The atmosphere was incredible from early on from where I was sat in the upper Anfield Road End. You can feel something is building and that this team could be capable of taking advantage.
I had a pretty good view of Salah’s goal, and that let off in the stands was quite the feeling as while it never looked like we would concede, having the cushion was greatly appreciated.
Fifteen wins from 17 games, what a job Arne is doing! ‘Libpool, top of the league!’
MATT: Iboouuuu. And plenty of others. Every player was superb individually, and collectively we look very well tuned (now for an international break to disrupt that rhythm).
It was noticeable how much sharper and on the front foot Robertson was. Rotation there is paying off and something the player would have benefited from more under Klopp in recent seasons.
Gravenberch’s block in the first half early on, and Kelleher’s saves in the second half are things we probably didn’t appreciate enough. Outstanding.
There’s absolutely no drop off when Alisson is out of the team now.
The bad…
MATT: Two words and an expletive okay? David f**king Coote.
Seriously though, how can a professional referee in the supposed best league in the world witness that with a good view and deem it no foul – not play on and advantage, but point blank declared it no foul.
If you were that incompetent in any other job you’ll be sacked, rightly so.
JOANNA: You won’t find me pointing out too many negatives from my evening!
I suppose the only real concern from the game is Trent’s injury and how long he may be out for. If it just the international break, that would be the ideal situation, but him missing Real’s visit would feel quite fortuitous…
And I can only echo what you’ve said there, Matt. Coote is living in a completely different dimension than us, how he’s still at this level is staggering.
Also I’m not picking on Nunez, but he had to do better with his second one-v-one and with his header.
And Salah is firmly putting the pressure on the club, is it a case of Liverpool needing to bow to his demands (within reason), you think?
JOANNA: Salah has a stronger hand, most definitely. He will want to feel correctly valued by the club, and with every passing day the pound signs will be increasing.
Where he would go if he left Liverpool would be interesting as the club will know there are not too many out there who would match or exceed or what they could offer.
Salah is not showing any signs of slowing down, and you sense he is as safe of an investment as you could get. Liverpool need to step up and do what is right, he cannot be allowed to leave on a free transfer.
MATT: Like all negotiations, it takes both sides to make it work. Salah may have the upper hand in one respect, but Liverpool will look at and know that he wants to stay to set more records at the club and within the Premier League‘s history.
And for Salah, his options are slim in my opinion. Saudi is off the cards if he wants to continue his legacy; Real don’t need him; Barca can’t afford him; PSG is a major step down. If he wants to remain at the elite level he also needs to compromise in order to remain at Anfield.
On the other hand, how much it cost to replace his output?!
