ANFIELD, LIVERPOOL // Alexis Mac Allister set Liverpool on its way to another win in the Champions League, this time against Bologna. The victory makes Arne Slot the first boss Reds boss in history to win eight of his first nine matches in charge.
The Reds beat AC Milan in their first European match in the new format, and Liverpool has now put itself in the strongest possible position to progress fuss-free and into the last-16, which will kick off in March next year. It was far from scintillating despite a strong start to the match but the host did enough to get over the line.
Mohamed Salah added a second goal with around 15 minutes to play with the Reds never really being under too much threat. Here are the four things Liverpool.com spotted as the game unfolded.
There was a school of thought that Arne Slot might make a couple more changes than he did for this one. Instead, it was only Diogo Jota, who picked up a knock at the weekend, who wasn't asked to go again. Curtis Jones and Cody Gakpo were made to wait for their opportunity, though it could come, of course, on Saturday. After that, there is an international break.
Liverpool didn't look like it was jaded at all, though more changes are perhaps now inevitable at the weekend to freshen things up. With so many big games coming after the international break, the full Liverpool roster will be required. Slot is obviously happy with the fitness levels at this stage of the season but it will be fascinating to see what the team is in three days in South London.
The evening started promisingly for Darwin Nunez, who was involved in the opening goal and looked bright. At one point, he sprinted back into the right-back area to cover for Salah, showcasing the exact kind of work ethic that Slot demands from his players.
After that first 20 minutes or so, though, he was relatively quiet. By the hour mark, he had been replaced by Diogo Jota. With so much competition for places, he can't afford too many games where he makes little impact. Jota, you would imagine, will get the nod to start on Saturday.
Midfield excels againRyan Gravenberch drifted past players like they weren't there at times, Mac Allister got on the scoresheet and impressed, scoring his first goal in Europe's top competition, and this was the best Dominik Szoboszlai has looked for a while. Liverpool was purring in the middle of the pitch at times and played some delightful stuff.
The only disappointment by half-time was that the Reds weren't more than a goal in front having start the match in electric style. Bologna had their moments but Liverpool, as has become the norm, was largely in control of things.
The second goal killed things and after Mac Allister stated in his pre-match press conference that he wants to win this competition, if the Reds' central trio continues to improve and play as well as this individually and collectively, the midfielder might just get his wish. Liverpool should be right up there among the favorites. Though it can play much better than it did here, there was a control and a calmness which was too often missing last year.
Mohamed Salah proves his point Mohamed Salah was given little but the referee but he will be used to that. Every week in the Premier League, he gets pulled back with nothing given. In Europe, you might think he would get more protection, but nothing changed.
Nonetheless, this was a better showing from the Liverpool number 11. He was able to create a few moments for himself, even if he should have done better with a couple of the positions he found himself in. Salah got the assist for the opening goal and got through plenty of work going the other way too. Then, he added his name to the scoresheet with a lovely goal.
The Liverpool man was poor at the weekend but still scored the winner. Here, he was much better and was involved in both goals that his side netted. Even when he isn't at his best, Salah is still Slot's most decisive player.
