Liverpool beat Porto 2-0 in the Champions League quarter-final first leg on Tuesday night, with four players standing out from the rest.
Jurgen Klopp‘s men went into the visit of the Portuguese champions as strong favourites and their superiority was on show throughout at Anfield.
The Reds raced into a two-goal lead thanks to Naby Keita‘s deflected effort and Roberto Firmino‘s tap-in, with the scoreline staying the same from that point on.
Liverpool cruised through much of the second half, with Porto seemingly not too unhappy with a 2-0 loss, and they head to Portugal for the return fixture in good shape.
Here we compare our player ratings with those from the Liverpool Echo, the Mirror, the Independent, Sky Sports, the Evening Standard, FotMob and the This Is Anfield readers.
On a night full of strong performances, it was Firmino (8.0) who earned the highest average rating, as he continues to perform superbly for Liverpool.
The Brazilian not only scored his side’s second goal but his work-rate was as tenacious as ever and he produced some wonderful moments of class on the ball.
The Echo‘s Ian Doyle described Firmino’s footwork as “delicious”, while the Mirror‘s David Anderson thought he was the star man at Anfield.
Not far behind was Keita (7.7), who has scored in back-to-back matches and is starting to look like the player so many were excited about last summer.
This is Anfield’s Joel Rabinowitz gave the 24-year-old his Man of the Match award, saying it was “further evidence that he can play a significant role in the run-in.”
Jordan Henderson (7.6) has enjoyed an excellent couple of games, shining in a more forward-thinking role and bringing back memories of his 2013/14 self.
Adam Bate of Sky Sports thought the skipper “seemed to enjoy the added freedom given to him in this system”, with FotMob noting that he made three key passes, including one in the lead-up to Firmino’s goal.
The fourth standout figure was Virgil van Dijk (7.2), who was a rock at the heart of the defence up against the dangerous Moussa Marega.
Rabinowitz said it was “the kind of performance it’s easy to take for granted”, such is Van Dijk’s incredible consistency.
The lowest-rated individual was the returning Dejan Lovren (6.3), but that seems harsh, considering the Croatian coped well having not started a game since January 7, away to Wolves in the FA Cup.
Next up for Liverpool is the visit of Chelsea on Sunday afternoon, in another must-win Premier League game.
Man City‘s 1-0 defeat to Tottenham in their Champions League clash will have given Klopp hope that Pep Guardiola’s team could be feeling the heat, ahead of their trip to Crystal Palace this weekend.
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