Liverpool drew with Crystal Palace this evening in a game which did little to renew confidence in this Reds team.
A response was needed following the humiliating 5-2 defeat at the hands of Real Madrid on Tuesday night. Unfortunately, Liverpool weren’t able to provide that.
The Reds looked shattered from pretty much the first minute. Only some poor finishing from a toothless Palace saved them from another defeat. Still, a third Premier League clean sheet in a row is something to grasp at the very least.
Here’s how we rated the players during Crystal Palace 0-0 Liverpool.
Defence
Alisson Becker: 7 – Looked alive after a dreadful error in midweek. Made one key save from Jean-Philippe Mateta and claimed some high balls well.
Trent Alexander-Arnold: 4 – An early overhit ball set the tone for Trent who was lucky not to be punished for some sloppy play in the first-half. So poor to be beaten by Jeff Schlupp in the corner, with Mateta hitting the bar.
Joel Matip: 5 – Like Trent, looked shaky from the first minute of the game. Almost punished for an underhit backpass to Alisson. Badly needs to find some confidence.
Virgil van Dijk: 7 – Handled Mateta well and looked more aggressive than we’ve seen him of late.
Andy Robertson: 6 – Needs to use the ball better in forward areas at times. Solid enough against the tricky Michael Olise.
Midfield
Jordan Henderson: 6 – Was guilty of one pass that put Matip in trouble early on, but generally did okay. Doesn’t offer enough in attacking phases and needs to move the ball quicker at times.
Naby Keita: 5– May get some harsher scores but wasn’t all bad in his 45 minutes on the pitch. Had to be hooked after an early booking and several rash-looking challenges.
James Milner: 7 – Man of the Match – A few eyebrows will have been raised at his inclusion but was typically industrious. One of the Reds better performers on the day, he was moved to right-back where he did well in the second-half.
Attack
Mohamed Salah: 6 – Couldn’t quite get into it in a new-look front three. Did come closest for Liverpool with a lovely effort curled off the bar.
Cody Gakpo: 6 – Some good early touches got the Reds into some dangerous areas early on. Faded a little as the game went on, could have done better when slipped through by Salah, but poked wide.
Diogo Jota: 5 – Jota looked sharp and perhaps the most likely Liverpool player to score when he was on the pitch. Some heavy touches made it clear he’s some way short of match fitness, though. Really could have used some good positions better.
Substitutes
Harvey Elliott: 7 – Instantly made Liverpool look a more attacking threat with a couple of nicely weighted balls into the box. Faded a little but surely now ahead of Keita in the pecking order.
Roberto Firmino: 5 – Barely seemed to touch the ball in his 20 minutes on the pitch. Ran offside in a couple of decent-looking attacks.
Fabinho: 5 – Picked up a booking early on and almost had another for a flailing arm soon later.
Stefan Bajcetic: N/A: On for the last five minutes, tracked Olise well late on.