Liverpool 2-0 Napoli: Jurgen Klopp’s side finish second in group despite win at Anfield

Liverpool ended their record-breaking Champions League run with victory over Napoli at Anfield, but still had to settle for second place in Group A.

Liverpool never looked remotely like they needed a four-goal winning margin against Napoli, who completely dominated the group, but these three points will act as a real boost to morale.

Thiago Alcantara brought a save from Napoli keeper Alex Meret in the first half as Napoli thought they were dead after the break only to have defender Leon Ostigardi’s header ruled out from a free kick after a long video assistant referee ruled it offside. VAR) examination.

The game looked to have a few chances to draw but Liverpool won when Mohamed Salah forced home a close goal with five minutes to go, with Nunez sealing the deal in added time.

Konate shows his class

The vulnerability of Liverpool’s defense, not helping through the struggling midfield, was one of the offensive features at the start of the season, but Ibrahima Konate showed what was missing as they confirmed their slot in the last 16 of the Champions League.

Konate suffered a pre-season knee injury that kept him out for the start of the campaign, then was sidelined again by a further muscle problem that saw Liverpool miss the final match without him.

The 23-year-old France defender returned against a strong Napoli attack and gave an excellent display to Liverpool, a far safer proposition than they have in recent seasons.

Konate’s defensive quality alongside Virgil van Dijk kept the dangerous Victor Osimhen at bay, showing composure, pace and physical presence as Napoli suffered a rare taste of defeat.

True, Napoli weren’t at their most destructive and knew it would take something truly special from Liverpool to turn this group on its head, but the class shown by Konate showed exactly why manager Jurgen Klopp will be hoping this talented young defender can hurt now. – free run for the rest of the season.

Liverpool will leave

Liverpool’s form and approach have been questioned after struggling defeats to Nottingham Forest and British Leeds – criticism justified by how poor they were, looking the shadow of a team that spent almost all of last season in pursuit of a historic quadruple.

Klopp’s team will take great heart from beating Napoli, although context has to be given that the Italians’ only four-goal record defeat made no difference to the group standings.

He removed the big threat from the group, with Liverpool’s goals coming so late on that there was never an opportunity to whip Anfield into any frenzy of anticipation.

This was an example of what Liverpool can do, but it also showed two sides of its season. They beat Manchester City and Napoli at Anfield without a goal, but they also suffered losses from injured teams who spent the first part of this term in competition, as well as losing to the United States and Arsenal, the two teams were severely punished. in recent times.

Liverpool looked more secure at the back, surviving a VAR scare when Odigard thought they had scored, then ended the match on a high with those two late goals which will act as a real game changer for manager Klopp, the players and followers of the club who have been so confused by their form so far .

The key now is consistency and Liverpool will have a serious test of their credentials when they travel to Tottenham, who were smart. the victory of Marseilles who saw them win the group, for the Premier League team on Sunday.

Player player match

RamsayCalvin Ramsay

Naples

1. team number77The name of the playerKvaratskhelia

2. team number9The name of the playerOsimhen

3. team number55The name of the playerStigard

4. team number3The name of the playerKim Min-Jae

5. team number68The name of the playerLobotka

6. team number21The name of the playerPolitano

7. team number99The name of the playerZambo Eel

8. team number17The name of the playerOlivera

9. team number22The name of the playerDi Lorenzo

10. team number91The name of the playerNdombélé

11. team number1The name of the playerHe deserves it

12. team number11The name of the playerLozano

13. team number20The name of the playerZielinski

14. team number7The name of the playerElmas

15. team number81The name of the playerto be scraped

16. team number18The name of the playerSimeon