Player Ratings: Liverpool ease past Newcastle with a second gear performance

Liverpool

Loris Karius – 7

For most of the match, he was the only player anywhere near the Liverpool penalty area – he did make a sensational save in first-half stoppage time to deny Diame and collected the few crosses that Newcastle produced with confidence.

Trent Alexander-Arnold – 6

Was able to constantly attack on the right-side given Newcastle’s defensive setup but all too often he failed to deliver any crosses or passes of quality.

Virgil van Dijk – 7

Barring one or two skewed clearances, it was another impressive performance – the number of headers he made was astonishing, but he was rarely disturbed throughout the entire match.

Dejan Lovren – 7

His relationship with van Dijk appears to be developing quicker than most expected – it was the type of game that saw Lovren have more of an impact in an attacking sense rather than defensive, he was always a threat from set-pieces.

Andrew Robertson – 7

Met his match in Yedlin in terms of pace but Liverpool’s left-back managed to beat his counterpart through his skill and movement – wasn’t as dominating a performance as we’ve seen from him this season but nevertheless, it was a solid showing.

Emre Can – 5

Kept encouraging his teammates to up the tempo but all too often it was his misplaced passes and sloppy possession that slowed Liverpool down.

Jordan Henderson – 7

Despite often being criticised for his lack of forward intent, he proved decisive in moving the ball towards his front three – he was pivotal in breaking up play once Newcastle gained possession.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain – 6

Was afforded a fair amount of space but it took him well into the second-half to start to exploit it – he punished the visitors with his drive and forward intent, and provided his sixth assist of the season.

Mohamed Salah – 7

Another game, another goal – his movement allowed him to create chances even against a tight defence that didn’t allow any of Liverpool’s attackers much space to operate.

Roberto Firmino – 5

Struggled to find his rhythm – his passing was wayward and his touches were poor, however, he did produce one moment of quality with a pinpoint pass for Mane’s goal.

Sadio Mane – 6

With his confidence on the rise, it was good for him to get another goal – he charged at the Newcastle defence time and time again but was guilty of spurning good opportunities with poor final balls.

Newcastle United

Martin Dubravka6

On the whole, it was another performance to encourage Newcastle fans – his defence left him exposed for Liverpool’s goals but, rather surprisingly, he wasn’t overly tested on his third start for the club.

DeAndre Yedlin – 5

Tried to make an impact going forward on the counter with his pace but to no avail – the number of long balls he hoofed forward during Newcastle’s periods of desperation must have almost reached double-figures.

Florian Lejeune – 5

Made four clearances and two blocks but his was main task was to limit the space for Liverpool’s attack.

Jamaal Lascelles – 5

Looked shaky, especially in the first-half, but improved as the game progressed – he brought the ball out of defence with some nice touches but it didn’t lead to anything.

Paul Dummett – 5

Limited the influence of Salah with fair success – was caught out of position at times but made a couple of crucial interceptions to deny Salah.

Kenedy – 6

Had to tuck in to help his central defenders in dealing with Liverpool’s ‘fab three’ – for most of the game he was stuck in a back five but when he did venture forward he looked a threat.

Mohamed Diame – 5

Was fairly anonymous in the Newcastle midfield – produced one fine shot which Karius saved at the end of the first-half but apart from that his impact was minimal.

Mikel Merino – 5

A quiet performance and was guilty of going down far too easily at times – no surprise to see him substituted early on.

Christian Atsu – 6

For an attacking right-sided player he was very defensive – his most notable contributions were a couple of crucial nicks to take the ball away from Salah.

Dwight Gayle – 4

Was a mere spectator before he was taken off – the fact that Newcastle’s most forward player had just 16 touches including a scuffed shot said a lot about the visitor’s performance.

Jacob Murphy – 5

Looked quite nervy on the ball and couldn’t really do much with it when he was in possession.

Oliver Miller

FoL's Matchday Correspondent @oliver_miller

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