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Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool welcomed Brendan Rodgers’ Leicester City to Anfield for their Premier League matchday 23 fixture on Thursday night.
At home, the Reds turned on the charm and cruised to a comfortable 2-0 win over the Foxes. The breezy win saw them move within nine points of title rivals and league leaders Manchester City with a game in hand.
The Merseysiders had more of the ball in the opening minutes but it was Leicester who registered the first shot on target. James Maddison tested Alisson Becker with a decent left-footed strike, but the Brazilian was equal to it. Soon after, Trent Alexander-Arnold drew a nice parry out of Kasper Schmeichel.
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The first goal of the night came soon after the half-hour mark from a set piece. Diogo Jota showcased his intelligent movement inside the box to convert from close range. The Reds came close to scoring on a couple more occasions in the first half, but were denied by a spirited Schmeichel.
Mohamed Salah was introduced 15 minutes into the second half and found himself through on goal in the 75th minute. Unfortunately for the Egypt international, the Danish keeper was in no mood to concede another just yet.
The home side’s insurance goal finally came in the 87th minute through the ever-dependendable Jota. Schmeichel somehow managed to get a hand on the ball but the strike was too powerful for him to keep out.
Here are the top five players who stood out in the Merseysiders’ comfortable win over Leicester on Thursday:
#5 Joel Matip
Sitting alongside Virgil van Dijk, Joel Matip helped maintain sanity at the heart of the Liverpoolian defense.
Matip was surefooted, did not take unnecessary risks, and pushed up the pitch whenever he got the chance.
Apart from setting up Jota’s second with a neat pass he completed, three interceptions, made two key passes and attempted two tackles.
A near-flawless display from the centre-back.
#4 Mohamed Salah
Four days after losing the AFCON final on penalties, Egypt international Mohamed Salah returned to Premier League action for his beloved Liverpool.
Introduced in the 60th minute in place of Roberto Firmino, Salah wasted no time getting into the game. His link-up play was spot on, he got into dangerous areas, and even hit the bar once.
Had he managed to bury that one-on-one opportunity in the 75th minute, he would have easily been one of the Reds’ top-three performers on Thursday.
#3 Thiago Alcantara
Seeing Thiago Alcantara on Liverpool’s books was a dream come true for millions of fans around the world. The Reds were finally getting a versatile, world-class central midfielder capable of taking the fight to any team in the world.
However, niggling injuries have kept him from charming the Anfield crowd week in, week out.
Featuring in his first Premier League match since December 16th, Thiago showed what the Reds were missing in the middle of the park. His movement was brilliant as ever, he dominated Leicester midfielders with ease, and made some killer passes over the course of the match.
The former Bayern Munich man won 12 duels, attempted four tackles and intercepted three passes.
He also completed two dribbles and saw five of his six long balls reach their intended targets. A complete and perfect shift from the 30-year-old.
#2 Luis Diaz
Liverpool signed Luis Diaz from Porto during the winter transfer window. Signed predominantly to cover for AFCON winner Sadio Mane, Diaz is a young man full of promise and skill.
He is quick, determined, and knows how to keep chipping away at the opposition. Making his Premier League debut on Thursday, Diaz produced everything but a goal, impressing the fans present at Anfield.
Despite being a natural left-winger, the Colombian easily popped up in all forward positions. He was an asset during counter attacks and looked full of ideas right from the get go.
Diaz also had a couple of decent shots on target but those were not enough to beat an in-form Kasper Schmeichel. Overall, it was a marvelous full-debut for the 25-year-old, and should help him retain his place in the team, at least for the next game.
#1 Diogo Jota
With Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah unavailable for AFCON, Diogo Jota popped up with some brilliant performances for Liverpool in January. The trend seems to have carried well into the month of February.
Jota scored a fantastic double to seal the win for Liverpool and was dubbed the Man of the Match for his exploits. His first, in the 34th minute, was a perfect poacher’s strike.
Virgil van Dijk’s goalbound header was parried by Schmeichel, but only onto the path of the Portuguese sharpshooter, who buried it from close range.
His second came in the dying embers of the match, courtesy of a well-worked Liverpool counter-attack. Following a neat exchange of passes, Matip found himself in space and the 25-year-old cannoned it into the bottom-left corner.
His well-taken brace took his Premier League goal tally to 12. He’s now second in the rankings, sitting four goals behind table-topper Mohamed Salah.
