Liverpool played Manchester City at The Etihad and despoiled City 4-1 as Roberto Firmino, Philippe Coutinho and Martin Skrtel all found the back of the net. Find out who stood out most in Rush The Kop’s Liverpool player ratings.
When asked by reporters in a press conference ahead of the match about how great Manchester City was, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp didn’t really bite. They wanted to know how he’d deal with City, how poor little Liverpool could ever stand a chance in silencing the thunderous attack that oil money provided City boss Manuel Pellegrini.
Klopp didn’t participate in the love fest, forgive him. Yeah they’re good, he admitted. That was it. He changed the subject and began speaking on his team. Crazy thought, the Liverpool manager preferring to talk about his players, isn’t in?
That adds yet another one to the innumerable pile of reasons he’s already so endeared by Liverpool fans. Prior to the match, he told the journos essentially that Liverpool needed to score more goals than City to win. Simple.
Liverpool did, indeed, score more goals than Manchester City. Complexly they ravaged the hopeless back line for four goals in the rout.
Roberto Firmino and Philippe Coutinho put forth a masterclass performance. Martin Skrtel and Lucas Leiva stood tall in the quelling of City’s attack.
Manchester City’s attack featured ex-Liverpool forward Raheem Sterling. He was booed heavily from the traveling Liverpool support whenever he touched the ball, but by the end of the game, they didn’t care.
NBC play by play commentator Arlo White put it best after Skrtel scored his side’s fourth: “The Liverpool fans are too busy partying they’ve forgotten to boo Sterling when he picks up the ball.”
What a performance. What a win.
Liverpool player ratings ahead. Don’t be shy in telling me how many times I’m wrong.
Simon Mignolet, 7:
The Belgian didn’t have many stops to make (relatively speaking) and couldn’t be faulted for the goal. His distribution was pretty good and made a great save on Aguero when the game was at a tender 3-1. Prior to that shot, he was alert to the poor pass back from Milner to nullify Sterling.
Nathaniel Clyne, 6:
Clyne wasn’t asked to defend as much as one would’ve thought. Sterling wasn’t very threatening and Clyne was a huge contributor in that.
Martin Skrtel, 9 (MoM):
No one on the field deserved a goal more than he did Saturday afternoon at The Etihad. What a finish that was. Skrtelinho with a 16 yard half volley!
Skrtel was responsible for cutting out about four crosses with Aguero lurking behind him for a tap in. He absolutely stepped his play up in the wake of Sakho’s injury, making the game easier for those around him, specifically Lovren.
Dejan Lovren, 7:
Fair play to Lovren, he came in and hardly put a foot wrong. He had less steps to put wrong than Skrtel did who led the way for the Croatian. If this is how he’ll play for the entirity of the Sakho injury, it’s more than Klopp could’ve ever asked.
Alberto Moreno, 8:
Moreno was tireless in his efforts and coalesced his engine with quality. He pressed efficiently and had no lapses of concentration. A great performance from the Spaniard.
Lucas Leiva, 7:
White (as usual) said it well: Lucas is an unsung hero. As well as the center halves played, Lucas made it easier for them by doing his job. By unfortunately picking up his fifth yellow card he’ll be suspended for their match next weekend.
A microcosm of the so called “Klopp Effect”: Lucas attempting ambitious forward passes. He’s NEVER done that.
Emre Can, 7:
In the preview for this match, I wrote that this was a great opportunity for Can to grow up a bit and accelerate his development.
Mature he was. Very impressive from Can. A sign of his maturation on the day: after he picked up a yellow card he didn’t drop his tenacity but didn’t allow himself into any silly challenges or fouls.
James Milner, 7:
How different this rating could have been had Sterling made something of the through ball Milner left for him. I suppose his missed that whole transfer saga in the summer because he was probably playing checkers too often or something. He can be forgiven for not noticing City’s no. 7, he is a slippery snake.
At any rate, Milner played solid. He won challenges, led the team diligently, tracked runners that most would miss or hope someone else would pick up. He won a goal saving aerial dual as he tracked a runner all the way down to his goal line. THIS is the James Milner Liverpool thought they signed.
Adam Lallana, 6 (OFF 90′):
Not everybody can get a 7, damnit!
Lallana took a backseat to Coutinho and Firmino going forward and that’s not a knock on the Englishman. He combined with the Brazilians well but the two samba boys were just a class above.
Philippe Coutinho, 8 (OFF 68′):
An absolutely brilliant performance by the Brazilian at The Etihad. That line is true for all three Brazilians Liverpool had in their starting XI. But Coutinho was omnipresent in the middle and final thirds: always running around hunting the ball or demanding a teammate give it to him. His pressing was admirable, movement smart and direct. His quality on the ball was as evident as ever, combining with Firmino like two Brazilian kids running the park in futsal.
Roberto Firmino, 8 (MoM) (OFF 77′):
Firmino looked worth every penny of the £29million heist Liverpool relinquished for him. He shares a quality with Yaya Toure in that he is almost worryingly calm when in possession, but always a step ahead of the defender. Firmino put Eliaquim Mangala under pressure for his opening own goal, set up Coutinho for a tap in on the second then scored his own tap in as Coutinho returned the favor for the third.
The 24-year-old gets an 8 rather than a 9 as he really could have had two or three goals. He had three great chances after his goal that Joe Hart stepped up and saved well. But his smart movement and contributions to the build up allowed him those opportunities. He was the club house leader for Man of the Match but Skrtel’s goal after his tremendous defensive display tipped the balance to the Slovakian.
Next: Three players Klopp should buy off FC Schalke
SUBS
Jordon Ibe, 6 (ON 68′):
Showed his confidence again in entering the game, Ibe ran at defenders whenever given the chance. Perfect type of performance off the bench when he entered at 3-1.
Christian Benteke, 5 (ON 77′):
Should’ve scored after his entry, was clean through on goal, delayed and allowed Hart to come cut the angle. Short minutes, this 5 doesn’t weight down his season average very much.
Kolo Toure, N/A (ON 90′):
KOLOKOLOKOLOKOLOKOLOKOLO TOURE gets to continue Klopp’s love for throwing a center back on in the dying moments of games in which Liverpool are winning.