Southampton v Liverpool: Firmino, Salah and Karius all impress

Liverpool played out an impressive 2-0 win at St Mary’s stadium today. The Reds travelled to face Southampton with five former Saints in their squad.

After Manchester Utd were beaten 1-0 by Newcastle earlier today, the Reds had the chance to close the gap between them and second place. The Magpies’ win dropped Southampton into the relegation zone, meaning there was all to play for on both sides.

Securing a 2-0 win, Liverpool have climbed back into third place and are now just two points behind rivals Utd.

Despite some sloppy passing and wasted chances, Jurgen Klopp’s team’s performance was strong all round. The Saints couldn’t buy a goal and the Reds’ forwards pressed the home defence with ease.

The only noise coming from the Saints fans was their consistent booing of recent transferee Virgil van Dijk. The Dutchman showed absolutely no signs of it bothering him and worked hard to keep a clean sheet against his old club.

Opening up the scoreline was Roberto Firmino after a great run and pass from Mohamed Salah. The sixth minute strike had the away fans sounding like the game was at Anfield. The order then switched around for the second goal as Firmino assisted Salah in a brilliant goal stemming from Joel Matip.

The Number 9 back-flicked the ball towards Salah who made sure the shot sailed past Alex McCarthy. A great first half for Jurgen Klopp and the lads.

An uncredited striker

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When Klopp made the move to convert Firmino into a striker, they both received a lot of backlash. Until recently, the Brazilian has been slated for not being a ‘real number 9’. Being compared to prolific strikers like Harry Kane and Sergio Aguero, Firmino looked weak starting off.

But the stats speak for themselves. This season the Brazilian has assisted 10 goals and scored 20 himself. Across all competitions he’s been involved in 31 goal scoring situations. He has netted 10 in the Premier League, which puts him ahead of Romelu Lukaku, Alvaro Morata and Anthony Martial.

Another unstoppable forward is Mohamed Salah. Since his arrival in the summer, he’s been Liverpool’s most important asset. Challenging Harry Kane for the top goal scorer, he shows absolutely no signs of stopping. The Egyptian is now on 22 Premier League goals, just one behind the reigning Golden Boot holder Kane. For the winger to clinch that number one spot would be a massive achievement for both him and club.

Stronger by the game

Liverpool’s continuous goalkeeper woes are starting to settle down. After what seemed like a coin toss being Klopp’s decision of who start each game, he’s finally settled for Loris Karius. The 24-year-old was demoted to second choice keeper after a dreadful 2016/17 season, but with Simon Mignolet failing to impress, the gloves are back on Karius’ hands.

With faith put in him and support from the fans, the German has flourished in confidence. Where he wouldn’t dare venture from his line, Karius is diving and punching like it’s his last game on earth. His performance against Southampton was superb. Where the back four failed, Karius was there to put a halt to any threats.

It’s so refreshing to see a confident keeper between the sticks. It seems van Dijk has been a positive influence on him too, as he’s often seeing rallying and instructing the rest of the defence, including Karius.

With FC Porto being Liverpool’s next clash, it’s hard to say whether Klopp will stick with Karius or have Mignolet in the starting XI. The Valentine’s Day Champions League clash is an important game and the Reds need their strongest man.

I’d like to see the Number 1 or even Danny Ward play against Porto. After five years at the club, Mignolet has had plenty of chances to prove himself and at aged 29, he seems to have already peaked.

Next: Player ratings: Southampton v Liverpool

It’s likely that Mignolet has hit a plateau in his career. So if Karius ups his game, will Klopp even need to invest in a new goalkeeper this summer?