Liverpool overcame Bournemouth 3-0 on Saturday afternoon through goals from Luis Diaz and Darwin Nunez.
Bournemouth appeared to have opened the scoring in the first-half courtesy of Antoine Semenyo, only for the video assistant referee to rule the goal out.
Liverpool then demolished their opponents over an 11-minute spell around the half-hour mark. Diaz struck twice in three minutes. Darwin Nunez then sealed the victory for Liverpool with a curled effort in the 37th minute.
Here, The Athletic’s Andy Jones analyses the key talking points from Saturday’s game at Anfield.
Can Liverpool afford to lose Alexander-Arnold?
The sight of Trent Alexander-Arnold striding forward into space in the inside right channel strikes fear into any backline, and Bournemouth were unable to stop him as he registered his first Premier League assist of the season.
He advanced to the edge of the Bournemouth box after Salah’s neat pass inside, waited for the pass to Diaz to open up and the Colombian did the rest.
It was a milestone moment for the right-back as it marked his 100th goal involvement for Liverpool in all competitions (19 goals, 81 assists), becoming the youngest player since Steven Gerrard to reach that tally.
Trent Alexander-arnold now has 100 goal involvements for Liverpool in all competitions (19 goals, 81 assists).
Aged 25 years, 350 days, he is the youngest player to reach 100 goals and assists for #LFC since Steven Gerrard in August 2005 (25y 72d).
— Michael Reid (@michael_reid11) September 21, 2024
Not that a reminder was needed, but it is another statistic which underlines how important he has been to Liverpool since breaking into the first team under Jurgen Klopp in 2017 and how they need to do everything in their power to keep hold of the defender.
While the set-piece specialist got his first assist of the season against AC Milan with a pinpoint floated free-kick for Ibrahima Konate, his ability to impact games from open play was shown against Andoni Iraola’s side. They had no answer to his surging runs from deep into the vacant space created by Liverpool’s movement.
Resolving his contract situation has to be Liverpool and sporting director Richard Hughes’ first priority. At 25, the England international would likely double those figures if he remained at Anfield, but with every day a contract isn’t signed, the uncertainty about his future grows.
Was this Nunez’s arrival for the season?
Darwin Nunez took his time as he walked back to the centre circle after opening his account for the season. With one arm in the air, the Anfield crowd responded with another rendition of his chant.
He looked like a player who had a weight lifted off his shoulders, ending a run of 14 matches without a goal for Liverpool. It had not been the electric start to the campaign Nunez would have hoped for under new head coach Arne Slot. Diogo Jota is the clear first choice and Nunez has been reduced to cameos from the bench.
In what had been a relatively quiet opening half for the Uruguay international on his first start of the season, he came to life on 38 minutes. After Salah released him down the right, Nunez cut back inside and curled a sensational effort in off the far post.
Nunez curls in his goal on Saturday (Alex Livesey/Getty Images)
As with all players, Slot and his coaching staff have been working with Nunez to help him adjust and adapt to the new system. They have used video analysis to help his understanding of what is expected both on and off the ball. On this evidence that work is paying off.
Slot will have been equally, if not more pleased, with his workrate out of possession. As well as leading the press, the forward repeatedly got back to help his teammates and win possession.
One example after 30 minutes, saw the 25-year-old deep in Liverpool’s half. He contested three challenges in quick succession bidding to gain possession and succeeded in winning his side a throw-in.
The striker has dealt with doubters throughout his first two seasons at Liverpool but Anfield was right behind him and voiced their support loudly. The challenge now is to produce this level of performance consistently. This was the ideal starting point.
How did Diaz respond to Gakpo’s Milan performance?
Luis Diaz had to take on a watching brief for the first time this season when Arne Slot handed Cody Gakpo his first start of the season against AC Milan. While the Netherlands international laid down an impressive marker at the San Siro, Diaz responded in perfect fashion.
The Colombian continued his excellent start to the season with two goals in five minutes to provide Liverpool with a commanding lead in the first half. It was another electric performance from the attacker, setting the early tempo with his ball carrying and he will be disappointed not to have added to his tally.
The 27-year-old has flourished under Slot and added more end product to his game. He is only four goals short of his league total (nine) from last season and if he continues this form then he will surpass that quickly.
Diaz hit two goals in the first-half (Alex Livesey/Getty Images)
Slot likes to have two high-quality players in every position and the battle for the left-wing role between Gakpo and Diaz is setting up to be an exciting back-and-forth contest.
Having both fit and in form gives Slot the perfect headache. Gakpo was unfortunate to lose his place in the starting XI after one of his best performances in a Liverpool shirt against Milan, but Diaz has been equally impressive.
If Diaz and Gakpo keep pushing each other’s performance levels then Premier League and Champions League right-backs better beware.
What did Arne Slot say?
We will bring you this after he has spoken at the post-match press conference.
What next for Liverpool?
Wednesday, September 25: West Ham United (H), Carabao Cup, 8pm BST, 3pm ET
Saturday, September 28: Wolverhampton Wanderers (A), Premier League, 5.30pm BST, 12.30pm ET
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(Top photo: Alex Livesey/Getty Images)
