Liverpool returned to much-needed winning ways in league action with Jurgen Klopp’s side recording a 2-0 win over Southampton on Saturday evening at Anfield.
Sadio Mane opened the scoring for the hosts and it all came down to Thiago Alcantara’s late strike to put the match to bed for the Merseysiders and keep their top-four hopes very much alive.
MATCH PROCEEDINGS
It was the visitors who got off to a strong start in the weekend showdown at Anfield despite the Saints missing the highly influential presence of former Liverpool man Danny Ings up top on the pitch.
However, Sadio Mane registered the first effort on goal after being found out by a sumptuous ball from Trent Alexander-Arnold but his finish let him down.
Liverpool enjoyed a number of chances in the final third of the pitch but Southampton No.1 Fraser Forster was up to the task and made a couple of good stops to deny Salah and then Jota.
Southampton threatened around the half-hour mark with Nathan Tella’s header being denied by Alisson Becker who following his initial save had to defy another Saints player in Stuart Armstrong.
Within a minute of Alisson’s heroics, Liverpool amped up their attacking numbers and Salah’s pinpoint cross for Sadio Mane led to the latter heading the ball past Forster into the back of the net as the Reds went into the half-time break with a 1-0 lead.
The closing 45 minutes were largely devoid of any major happenings barring both goalkeepers having to make a couple of routine saves on either end of the pitch.
In the dying stages of the game, Thiago Alcantara took his chance and with a neat driving finish into the bottom corner brought up his very first Liverpool goal as the hosts finished the game with a 2-0 scoreline in their favour and moved back into the sixth spot in the standings.
