SALZBURG, AUSTRIA - Tuesday, December 10, 2019: Liverpool's Naby Keita (L) and FC Salzburg's Masaya Okugawa during the final UEFA Champions League Group E match between FC Salzburg and Liverpool FC at the Red Bull Arena. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)

Salzburg 0-2 Liverpool: Player Ratings – What the media and statistics say

Liverpool were commanding in their 2-0 win away to Salzburg on Tuesday evening, with Naby Keita enjoying another star showing.

The pressure was on the European champions in Austria, with defeat likely to see them eliminated from the Champions League.

They passed with flying colours, however, becoming increasingly dominant as the game went on and eventually sealing a deserved victory.

Keita headed Liverpool in front early in the second half after good work from Sadio Mane, before Mohamed Salah added a quickfire second with a remarkable finish from a tight angle.

It means the Reds have made it into the Champions League knockout stage, as they avoided the embarrassment of being eliminated at the first hurdle.

Here we compare our player ratings with those from the Liverpool Echo, the Mirror, the Independent, Sky Sports, FotMob and the TIA readers.

Keita (8.2) was Liverpool’s undisputed star man at the Red Bull Arena, looking something close to the world-class player many expected to see arrive from RB Leipzig.

The 24-year-old was superb against his former club, not only opening the scoring but also oozing composure in the middle of the park.

TIA’s Henry Jackson gave Keita the Man of the Match award and said it was “one of his most positive nights for the club.”

Meanwhile, David Maddock of the Mirror felt Liverpool’s No.8 “showed power and intelligence in his running all evening.”

SALZBURG, AUSTRIA - Tuesday, December 10, 2019: Liverpool's players line-up for a team group photograph before the final UEFA Champions League Group E match between FC Salzburg and Liverpool FC at the Red Bull Arena. Back row L-R: goalkeeper Alisson Becker, Dejan Lovren, Virgil van Dijk, Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mané. Front row L-R: Naby Keita, Georginio Wijnaldum, captain Jordan Henderson, Andy Robertson, Trent Alexander-Arnold. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)

Alisson (8.1) was next in the running, on a rare busy night for the Brazilian, when he was worth his weight in saves.

The Echo‘s Ian Doyle hailed a “double save from Hwang and Minamino”, as well as “another good stop from Haaland.”

Mane (8.1) was tied with Alisson, as he again showed why he has been Liverpool’s most important attacking player this season.

Maddock went as far as to say that “there can’t be a player in better form in world football at minute” than the forward – he’s not wrong.

SALZBURG, AUSTRIA - Tuesday, December 10, 2019: Liverpool's Virgil van Dijk (L) and FC Salzburg's Hee-Chan Hwang during the final UEFA Champions League Group E match between FC Salzburg and Liverpool FC at the Red Bull Arena. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)

Virgil van Dijk (7.9) took home third prize on yet another imperious evening at the heart of the Reds’ defence.

The 28-year-old made an impressive 11 ball recoveries, according to FotMob, and also won two aerial duels and produced three clearances.

The lowest-rated player was a slightly out-of-form Roberto Firmino (6.4), with Jackson describing his performance as “another hit-and-miss showing.”

Liverpool’s next outing is on Saturday lunchtime, as the Reds host struggling Watford in the Premier League.