Liverpool welcomed the Champions Leicester City to a new-look Anfield for this weekend’s Saturday evening kickoff.
In what turned out to be a relatively straightforward game for the Reds (barring one unfortunate mistake at the back that gifted Leicester their only goal), Liverpool ran out 4-1 winners in front of the magnificent new Main Stand and manager Jurgen Klopp, who this week called on his team to give opponents ‘hell’ throughout the rest of the season.
Some tweaks were made to the starting lineup. An arduous international break saw Philippe Coutinho drop to the bench, while Dejan Lovren was ruled out before the match with a facial injury sustained in training. Loris Karius made a welcome appearance among the other substitutes.
On the pitch, Lucas Leiva lined up alongside Joel Matip in the heart of defence, with vice-captain James Milner once again preferred to Alberto Moreno at left-back. Daniel Sturridge led the line, flanked by Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane, while Jordan Henderson captained the side from the middle of the park.
A brace from the impressive Firmino bookended a goal from Mane after good work from Sturridge, which was itself followed by a sumptuous strike from Lallana. Four goals against the Champions is an achievement that should force the rest of the league to stand up and take notice, a result that will no doubt bring plenty of praise from the manager and media alike.
Here’s how I rated Liverpool today. I chose not to include the substitutes (Coutinho, Stewart and Moreno) because they had little impact on the game after coming on.
