Liverpool 2-0 Newcastle United: 5 Talking Points 

Rafael Benitez returned to his former hunting ground hoping to derail the march of his former employers. However, it was not to be as Jurgen Klopp's men put in a disciplined display and ran out comfortable winners in a match that they were touted to win easily, given their form and personnel available at hand.

Mohamed Salah opened the scoring for the Reds in the 40th minute and Sadio Mane added another in the 55th minute to ensure that the Reds ended the game with the all-important 3 points to move above Manchester United for more than 24 hours at least.

Here are the 5 Key Talking Points from the game between the Reds and the Magpies.

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#5 Mo Salah's impressive scoring streak continues

Historically, a tie between these two sides has been a goal fest and given Liverpool's pedigree in front of the goal this season, the trend was set to continue and it was inevitable before the red-hot Mohamed Salah would find the back of the net.

After a couple of half chances that he should have converted, given his calibre, the Egyptian eventually broke the deadlock in the 40th minute when a perfectly weighted pass from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain found Salah free inside the box and the former Roma man did not fail to oblige.

The goal takes Salah to 24 goals in the Premier League and with another 8 assists in the League, Salah has directly contributed close to 48% of the goals scored by the Reds in the Premier League.

With the season approaching its business end, the Reds faithful will be hoping that their star forward can continue finding the back of the net for fun as they remain in a strong position in the League table and are almost guaranteed a spot in the next round of the UEFA Champions League.

#4 Newcastle can take a lot of heart from their performance

Lascelles and co. should take heart from their outing against a marauding Liverpool side

Let's be honest here. While Rafael Benitez had never lost to Liverpool before, he has also never managed a side so bereft of quality and it would have required a lot of grit, as well as luck (remember Joselu's equaliser at the St James Park?) to ensure that his positive record against his former employers continued.

While that was not to be, Newcastle can actually take a lot of heart from their performance against a side that is head and shoulders above them in terms of quality on every part of the pitch. They put in a disciplined performance to keep Liverpool away from finding the back of the net at a venue that has seen them tear open even the best of defences with ease and their defenders weren't afraid to put their bodies on the line for the cause of the side.

They did have a couple of half chances that, if converted, could have turned the game on its head and while Liverpool dominated, Newcastle proved to be worthy and willing opponents to the high-flying Reds.

With just 9 games to play in the season, Newcastle have a battle on their hands if they want to retain their status as a Premier League club and while a win would have immensely boosted their confidence, the Magpies should take a lot of heart from this performance that did not let Liverpool off the hook.

#3 Loris Karius growing with each match day

Karius' recent performances have impressed the Liverpool fans.

It was not long ago that Loris Karius was seen as a poor man's Simon Mignolet. The German had often flattered to deceive and thus his chances of becoming the number 1 took a hit. Subsequently, Liverpool were linked with a few goalkeepers.

However, Jurgen Klopp decided that his chances couldn't hurt any less if he handed his compatriot an extended run in between the sticks and after a rather tumultuous return to the position, Karius is finally showing why Klopp rates him so highly. Karius has kept 3 clean sheets in his last 5 appearances for the Reds and while that is an impressive statistic, the matter in which he has achieved that must please a lot of the Liverpool faithful.

With the game still goalless, Karius pulled off an impressive save to deny a fierce and swerving shot from Diame on Saturday to give his side an upper hand and while his distribution still needs working upon, he has in general, looked very comfortable since Virgil van Dijk set his foot on the Anfield soil in a Liverpool jersey.

It has been reported that Liverpool are actively looking to bring in reinforcements in the summer and while that is a welcome move, Karius could change Klopp's mind if he continues to put in strong performances for the Reds.

#2 The lack of a genuine goalscorer is hurting Newcastle

Benitez must resolve Newcastle's attacking woes to retain their Premier League status

Newcastle United find themselves just 2 points away from the troubled relegation zone and it has largely been due to their inability to regularly find goals. Their current highest goal scorer in the League is Dwight Gayle, who has scored just 5 goals and is only slightly better than West Bromwich Albion's top scorer Soloman Rondon who has scored just 4.

The Magpies find themselves in a precarious position going into the business end of the season and hence, Rafael Benitez will need to find a quick solution to their attacking woes in order to retain their status as a Premier League club.

In fact, to put matters into perspective, the last two times Newcastle United were relegated, their top scorers were Obefami Martins/ Michael Owen (8 goals apiece in 2008-09 season) and Georginio Wijnaldum (11 goals in 2015-16 season) and given their general record when their strikers fail to find their shooting boots, Newcastle could be on their way to the lower divisions.

The side lacks a possible wild card in the attacking department and while acquiring the services of Islam Slimani to bolster their attacking line-up was a sound move, he has sustained a thigh strain which is expected to keep him out of the side until the end of March. Benitez will be keen to reverse the existing attacking record in the weeks to come and will definitely be hoping for a miracle to resolve the issue.

#1 Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is quickly becoming a key player

Oxlade-Chamberlain is thriving under Jurgen Klopp

Having already talked about Jurgen Klopp handing Loris Karius a second chance to revive his career, its time to talk about another player whose career Klopp seems to be reviving, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

While he arrived at Arsenal amidst a lot of hype after his development through the Southampton academy (Liverpool were also believed to be interested in acquiring his services) but after being shuttled all over the pitch by Wenger, it was time for Chamberlain to find himself a new home.

The Englishman left the Emirates in a bid to play in his preferred central position and is definitely developing into a troublesome presence for the opposition. He has shown great ability to link up effectively with the likes of Salah, Mane and Firmino and given his industriousness off the ball as well as skill on it, Oxlade-Chamberlain is proving that Klopp's decision to spend heavily to acquire his services from Arsenal was the right one.

He has been a creative spark in the absence of Adam Lallana and also brings in a lot of bite to the midfield, a facet that Lallana must learn from the 24-year-old and his performances are rapidly making him a deserved fan favourite at the club. With 4 goals and 5 assists thus far, Oxlade-Chamberlain is heading for his best finish to a season in his career (his previous best was the 2016-17 season where he scored 3 goals and registered 8 assists).