OPINION
Liverpool registered their third win of the season on Saturday by netting one goal to take away all three points from their home clash against Brighton, and there were plenty of talking points to take away from the game.
Mo Salah scored the only goal of the game in a 1-0 victory, latching onto a mistake by Brighton’s Yves Bissouma, who gave away the ball away in a sloppy fashion to allow the forward to slot home the winner.
Young defender Trent Alexander-Arnold came into his own during this match, and his 40 yard pass to the feet of Salah was sublime, showing us just how much skill he possesses at such a young age after being selected to start on the right by Jurgen Klopp.
However, this was not one of Liverpool’s best performances, especially as the Brighton defence remained rigid to any attack that came their way.
Live 4 Liverpool has picked out three things we learned about the Reds v Brighton:
Liverpool learned to win ugly
It is safe to say that the Reds’ usually fearsome attacking trio were not at their best on Saturday against a solid Brighton back line. Even though they attempted to make the most of the opportunities that were handed to them, they were not able to cause the havoc that they do against teams. Sadio Mane was arguably a shadow of the player we saw in the first two matches by misplacing passes, whilst Salah and Roberto Firmino were not provided with enough chances. However, Liverpool managed to grind out the three points here, but not in the fashion that they would usually do it in. They were not fluid enough to break down the Seagulls’ defence, but they did learn how to win ugly, which is incredibly important when bidding for the title.
Alisson had his best game so far
The Brazilian giant – who stands at 6’3″ [Transfermarkt] – arguably put out his best performance against Brighton on Saturday, showing off his skill and confidence in his own ability. He is calm on the ball, and unlike most goalkeepers, does not panic when a player is chasing down a ball. This was demonstrated with the way he handled the pace of Brighton’s Anthony Knockaert chasing down a Virgil Van Dijk pass, chipping the ball over his opponent’s head that landed at the feet of the Dutchman. It is moments like that which would make Klopp realise that he has a special player on his hands, combined with his ability to perform at pivotal moments. He made a vital save from a Pascal Gross header late in the game, which arguably secured Liverpool all three points in what was a star of the show display.
No sign of one-season wonder for Salah
Salah has started the season how he means to go on – scoring goals for Liverpool. In this game, he showed no signs of slowing despite a resolute Brighton defence, netting the only goal of the game. The Seagulls kept him relatively quiet throughout the match, but he still showed the threat he can cause, and he was unlucky not to have grabbed a few more. Anybody who thinks that he is just a one-season wonder should look at this game – the fact he was still able to threaten Brighton despite them standing solid goes to show what an exceptional talent he is. Once again, Liverpool were able to rely on their star man for the win – and he will only continue to maintain this form throughout the season.
