A ruthless second-half display from Liverpool saw Jurgen Klopp’s side beat West Ham 3-1 at the London Stadium on Sunday, with Mohamed Salah scoring two exceptional goals to set up the win.
David Moyes’ in-form Hammers threatened to stifle Liverpool until, 12 minutes after the break, Salah clinically finished an incisive attack to open the floodgates.
The Egyptian bagged a superb second to round off a brilliant counter-attacking move from the visitors, and Georginio Wijnaldum added a third with six minutes remaining. Craig Dawson’s late goal from a set-piece was little more than a consolation.
The win – Liverpool’s second in four days – sees them move up to third in the Premier League table, four points behind leaders Manchester City. The result ended West Ham’s seven-game unbeaten run in the league.
Here, i looks at five noteworthy performances from the game…
Mohamed Salah 9/10
Salah drifted through the opening 56 minutes of the match, struggling for time and space as West Ham threatened to stifle Liverpool’s main attacking weapon. But the Egyptian’s great talent is his ability to turn even a hint of a chance into a major opportunity, and his opening goal was a classic Salah finish – the quick step onto his left foot and the powerfully curled strike into the far corner.
If his first goal was classic Salah, the second was the 28-year-old at his absolute best. He resisted the urge to get on the end of Trent Alexander-Arnold’s long pass forward as Liverpool launched a counter-attack, instead drifting into space in the middle. He then produced the silkiest of touches to bring Xherdan Shaqiri’s cross under control and dinked a finish past Lukasz Fabianski in one fluid motion, a moment of world-class quality.
Michail Antonio 6/10
West Ham’s centre-forward ran himself into the ground, offering an effective outlet when his team were keeping it tight at 0-0, and then providing a spark when the Hammers were forced to chase the game.
He should probably have scored after making space for himself in the box on 56 minutes, only to whip his shot narrowly wide. But his incredible work-rate finally caught up with him as he visibly tired during the second half, with Mark Noble replacing the forward with ten minutes remaining.
Xherdan Shaqiri 6/10
The highlight of Shaqiri’s evening came with his final touch – the perfectly-weighted cross on the counter-attack that set up Salah’s second.
That moment of quality earned the 29-year-old an embrace from his manager, but the previous hour of football had seen him struggle to make much of an attacking impact against a well-organised West Ham defence.
To have a player of Shaqiri’s ability available to cover for injuries – as he did in this game, with Sadio Mane out with a minor knock – is a major fillip for Klopp. And the player should take confidence from his part in the goal that effectively won Liverpool the game.
Tomáš Souček 7/10
West Ham’s central midfield pairing has been at the heart of their success under David Moyes this season. But while it is England international Declan Rice who receives much of the praise, Tomáš Souček has been equally impressive in that double pivot.
The 25-year-old Czech Republic international is understated but effective, providing a shield for the defence and offering enough quality on the ball to ensure West Ham always have a foothold in any game.
Souček and Rice kept Liverpool’s midfield under control for the best part of an hour, but were caught out by the immediate impact of substitute Curtis Jones for the opener and then found themselves both out of position for the second.
Trent Alexander-Arnold 7/10
Liverpool’s right-back followed on from his much-improved display against Tottenham Hotspur on Thursday with another lively performance.
Alexander-Arnold was good on the ball throughout, and his raking cross-field pass to find Shaqiri in the build-up to Liverpool’s second was a wonderful piece of vision.
There is still a way to go before the England international gets to the level that saw him pick up a host of individual awards at the end of the 2019-20 season, but the Liverpool full-back’s showing against the Hammers suggested that he’s on the mend.
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