It was nerve-wracking and took all of 120 minutes plus penalties, but Liverpool are Super Cup winners, having got the better of Chelsea in Istanbul.
Adrian was the hero, then villain, then the hero again, saving the winning penalty from Tammy Abraham in the shootout, on the Spaniard’s first competitive game for the Reds.
Jordan Henderson also continues to step out of Steven Gerrard’s shadow, lifting his second trophy as Liverpool captain in the space of less than three months.
It has been a productive first week of the season for Jurgen Klopp’s side, who cruised to victory at home to Norwich City’s in last season’s Premier League opener, prior to their Super Cup success.
Each Monday moving forward, we will be selecting Liverpool’s five best performers from the previous weekend, but as it’s Saturday, we’ve included the Super Cup this time around as a bonus.
Here’s who tops Liverpool’s Power Rankings going into the clash with Southampton at St Mary’s – can they retain their place moving forward?
5. Adrian
Fair play to Adrian, he made a couple of tidy stops, particularly in the first half when Liverpool struggled to find their feet.
He did concede the penalty, but VAR should have overturned the decision.
Jordan Henderson was right to pass the Super Cup off to Adrian first, having saved Tammy Abraham’s fifth penalty to secure the trophy.
He also fared well on his debut against Norwich, having replaced Alisson.
4. Virgil van Dijk
While the defence did look shoddy at times, Van Dijk marshalled the troops well in both matches.
Chelsea scored two offside goals – proof that his communication and awareness are still top class- and he even came close to scoring, adding to his goal against Norwich.
3. Mohamed Salah
It wasn’t his best game against Chelsea, but Salah still looked dangerous throughout.
With the pressure on the Egyptian, he scored Liverpool’s fifth and final penalty in the shootout.
A goal and an assist on the opening night against the Canaries also can’t be ignored.
2. Roberto Firmino
Firmino followed up his Man of the Match display against Norwich with an excellent cameo off the bench in the Super Cup.
The Reds look a completely different team with him leading the line.
The Brazilian selflessly set up Sadio Mane for both of his goals, as well as slotting home his penalty in the shootout.
1. Sadio Mane
In his first start of the season, Mane scored two goals in a cup final, having also shone in a second half cameo against Norwich.
What a footballer.
Let’s see if he can keep his top spot in the Power Rankings against former club Southampton on Saturday.