Brighton 0-2 Liverpool: Reds Player Ratings as they keep at City's heels in the title race
Brighton & Hove Albion weren't in the best of form when they welcomed Liverpool for their game week 29 fixture in their Premier League on Saturday. They had lost four league matches on the trot before the game.
Liverpool, meanwhile, were looking to extend their winning run to eight in all competitions. They got off on the front foot as Luiz Diaz's header from the edge of the box gave them the lead in the 19th minute.
Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane both had further chances to extend the lead but failed to find the back of the net. A second-half handball from Yves Bissouma on a Naby Keita shot handed Liverpool a penalty. Salah didn't miss this time and secured a two-goal cushion for the Reds, which was enough to see off the game.
With that victory, Liverpool are just three points off league leaders Manchester City, who face Crystal Palace on Monday. Brighton's woes continued to pile as they slumped to their fifth consecutive loss in the league for the first time since 2007.
Here are the Liverpool players' ratings from the game:
Liverpool Player Ratings vs Brighton:
Alisson Becker: 7/10
Great SAVE by Alisson .. Superb!! #BRILIV https://t.co/KGb4wx3ZKT
The Brazilian keeper had fairly little to do in the first half but he came to the fore when he needed to in the second half. He made a brilliant reflex save off Danny Welbeck's flick from close range. He also saved another couple of shots from Solly March.
Trent Alexander-Arnold: 6/10
It wasn't a game where Alexander-Arnold's creativity flourished. His opposite number on the other end, Marc Cucurella, had a great game despite being on the losing side. March gave the English right-back a solid test down the right in the second half.
Virgil van Dijk: 7/10
Van Dijk read the game really well and won a lot of headers in the first half when Brighton were going long. He was hardly disturbed by any offensive move.
Joel Matip: 8/10
Matip's wonderful ability to progress the ball was on display again today. 7 of 27 pass attempts were progressive. And look at those ball carries 😍 https://t.co/NvVT64pfAk
Matip whipped a beautiful long ball towards Luiz Diaz to open Liverpool's scoring. Defensively, he covered really well for the fullbacks in both the first and second half.
Andy Robertson: 7/10
Robertson was a great engine down the left flank and tracked back really well to defend in the whole of the second half. He could have had a goal to the good and even a couple of assists if his cutbacks had found the runners.
Fabinho: 6/10
The Reds midfield was given a hard time by Brighton's pressing and even gave up the ball too easily at times. Fabinho lost five out of his nine ground duels but also completed four out of five long balls. He also had 37 touches in the game.
Naby Keita: 5/10
Keita was easily the most overwhelmed by Brighton's early pressure. He lost the ball twice in dangerous areas early in the first half to set off Brighton on the break. He also lost out to Bissouma in a dangerous area in the second. He lost four out of five ground duels.
Jordan Henderson: 6/10
Henderson made no serious mistakes to point out, but did nothing really good to point out either. Gave decent support to Alexander-Arnold and Salah by drifting to the right wing but crossing really isn't his strong hold.
Mo Salah: 6/10
Salah didn't really have his finishing boots on and got so desperate for a goal that he failed to find teammates in better spots at times. However, he made no mistake from the spot to bury the penalty. He was replaced by Diogo Jota soon after a small injury scare.
Sadio Mane: 8/10
Unlike Salah, Mane looked impressive even without a goal. He was very good with linkups, won 8/10 ground duels and won four fouls as well. He also completed all three of his dribbles. He had a couple of chances as well but nothing concrete.
Luis Diaz: 9/10
Luis Díaz's game by numbers vs. Brighton:
100% shot accuracy
100% tackle success
56 touches
9 touches in opp. box
7 duels won
6 fouls
6 x possession won
3 fouls won
2 tackles made
2 chances created
2 shots
1 goal
Absolutely non-stop. ⚡️ https://t.co/MzxR5ejiOj
A very impressive all-round performance by Liverpool's new signing. He scored the first goal with a very brave header. He also displayed excellent movement off the ball and dribbling ability with the ball throughout the game. He missed a very late 1v1 opportunity to seal the game with a brace.
Substitutes:
Thiago: 6/10
He kept things simple since coming on. Lost the ball once in the middle but was spared his blushes by Fabinho's recovering tackle.
Diogo Jota: 5/10
He sparsely got the ball in the 25 minutes he was on the pitch and took no shots during that time.
James Milner: NA
Late substitute for Jordan Henderson.