Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool crashed their way back into the top-4 after a comfortable victory over Eddie Howe’s Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium this weekend. Philippe Coutinho’s superb solo-goal gave the visitors an early lead, which was doubled, not long later by Dejan Lovren, from close range.
Mohamed Salah, who was teasing the Bournemouth defence all night, added a third before the break and though Jermain Defoe came close after the break, Roberto Firmino’s goal sealed the deal for the Reds, who are now on a 12-match unbeaten run this season. Here are the player ratings for the Reds in this tie:
Liverpool Players Rated And Slated
Simon Mignolet (6):
A comfortable night, after coming back into the squad from an injury, where he had just one good save to make, on his way to a clean sheet.
Joe Gomez (7):
Growing more and more confident by the game, Gomez, put in a solid defensive display and showed encouraging signs in attack, cementing himself in the first team.
Dejan Lovren (8):
Gets a lot of stick for his mistakes but barely made any against Bournemouth, giving the attackers not time and space on the ball and threw himself dangerous at the other end, to take Liverpool 2-0 up.
Ragnar Klavan (7):
Did well to keep the likes of Defoe away from danger as he won most balls thrown at him in the air on a night where was not tested consistently.
Andrew Robertson (8):
A confident display from the youngster, who was ever-present in the attack and had a good rapport with Coutinho. Also did his job well, keeping Jordan Ibe quite, helping his side to an easy victory.
Jordan Henderson (7):
Was pro-active, looking for the defence breaking ball early and also did well to harass the Bournemouth midfield, keeping Liverpool on the front foot.
Alex-Oxlade Chamberlain (8):
Was relentless with his running, starting in the midfield and was constantly winning possession of the ball, releasing his side into the attack, keeping the pressure on the Cherries.
Georginio Wijnaldum (6):
Stuck to his task well, to keep the ball rolling and retaining possession deep in the midfield but did not do too much to create chances at the other end.
Mohamed Salah (7):
His pace and dribbling were a constant threat to the Bournemouth backline. Prodded and knocked on the door for a while before scoring late in the first half, to cap off another impressive display.
Roberto Firmino (7):
Was smart with his touches and movement in and around the box. Got himself a goal with a smart header and did enough to keep the Bournemouth defence on their toes. Also picked up the assist for Lovren’s goal with a smart pass.
Philippe Coutinho (8):
Dictated the game in the final third, with a lovely passing range after opening the scoring for his side with a mazy run. Picked up the assist for Firmino’s goal on a fruitful night.
Substitutes:
Adam Lallana (6):
Came on with less than 20 minutes to play but improved Liverpool’s tempo late in the game and created two decent chances, back on the field after a long time.
Dominic Solanke (6):
Failed to take a couple of chances that fell to him.
Danny Ings (N/A):
Should have scored with his first touch in the game.
