EPL 2016/17: Swansea City 1-2 Liverpool - Player Ratings

SWANSEA, WALES - OCTOBER 01: Roberto Firmino of Liverpool (L) and Sadio Mane of Liverpool (R) celebrates their sides first goal during the Premier League match between Swansea City and Liverpool at Liberty Stadium on October 1, 2016 in Swansea, Wales.  (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)
Firmino is proving to be one of the most effective attacking players at Liverpool with another match-winning display

Liverpool extended their winning run to five in all competitions after beating Swansea City 2-1 at the Liberty Stadium. Leroy Fer scored Swansea’s opener before Liverpool sparked a comeback after the break with a header from Roberto Firmino and an ice-cool penalty from James Milner to clinch three points.

The result lifts Liverpool to second place in the PL table for now, while further jeopardising the position of Swansea manager Francesco Guidolin, whose job is now hanging by a thread after a dismal start to this year’s league campaign.

Let’s have a look at the player ratings of the game.


Swansea City

Leroy Fer opened the scoring with his fourth goal of the season for Swansea

Lukasz Fabianski: 6/10

The former Arsenal goalkeeper was barely tested in the first-half as Liverpool failed to hit the target. He was not at fault for the first goal and was well-protected by his defence in front of him. He could have done better with the penalty late into the game as he was beaten with ease by Milner.

Angel Rangel: 6/10

The Swans right-back had a good first-half and did well in the second as well, which included a surging run into Liverpool’s box to feed Routledge. However, he let himself down by giving away the penalty by committing a foul on Firmino inside the box.

Jordi Amat: 7.5/10

The Spanish centre-half put on a top display in defence and was a key reason for Liverpool not having a shot on target in the first-half. He dominated the Liverpool forwards in the first-half and picked up an assist for Swansea’s opener.

Amat kept Swansea in the game with crucial interceptions in the second-half on Mane, Sturridge, and Coutinho. If not for him, Liverpool would have won by a much more considerable margin.

Mike van der Hoorn: 6/10

The Dutchman worked well with Amat to shut out Liverpool in the first-half and struggled in the second-half against a raiding Liverpool attack. He should have equalised for Swansea in injury-time.

Kyle Naughton: 6/10

The 27-year old left-back tried his best to contain Sadio Mane, but had mixed results as he was beaten by the Liverpool forward’s pace and movement on a regular basis. He, however, executed an important block on Mane in the second-half with the scores level.

Leon Britton: 7/10

The Swansea captain showed why he was missed at the start of the season with a diligent display against the Liverpool midfield, especially in the first-half. He was sharp in his reading of the game as Swansea did well for their lead in the first-half.

However, he started getting stretched as Liverpool increased the tempo and conceded the free-kick that led to Liverpool’s equaliser.

Jack Cork – 6.5/10

The Englishman worked hard to support Swansea both in attack and defence and did well in the first-half to contain Liverpool’s midfield thrust. He was given the captain’s armband after Britton’s substitution and blocked a dangerous ball from Liverpool’s Can late in the second-half.

Leroy Fer: 7.5/10

The Dutchman scored his 4th goal of the season with a tap-in off a corner exposing Liverpool’s set-piece frailties yet again. He was the first line of press for the Swans as they counter-pressed Liverpool to win the midfield battle in the first-half.

He became increasingly frustrated in the second-half as Liverpool came to life and was substituted to provide more stability in midfield.

Gylfi Sigurdsson: 6.5/10

The Icelandic international was a constant attacking outlet for the Swans’ attack and delivered inviting balls from free-kicks and corners. His corner led to the first goal and Borja should have also scored from a fantastic free-kick delivered by Sigurdsson in the first-half.

In the second-half, he failed to win the battle against Clyne and faded as the game progressed.

Wayne Routledge: 7/10

The 31-year old wide man caused all sorts of problems to right-footed Milner at left-back with his pace and produced a brilliant cross for Borja who failed to head it home. He was replaced by Barrow in the second-half as Guidolin wanted a more direct attacking option with the game level.

Borja Baston: 6.5/10

The club-record signing from Atletico Madrid made his first start of the season as the lone striker for the Swans and was a constant menace to the Liverpool defence. He showed excellent movement to get into position for a free header off Routledge’s cross and another header off Sigurdsson’s free-kick. However, he failed to score either of them.

He was left isolated in the second-half as Swansea failed to get forward with the same verve as in the first-half.

Substitutes

Modou Barrow – 5/10

Barrow came on for Routledge in the 61st minute to provide direct running for Swansea. However, he struggled to cope with Liverpool’s pressing and was constantly dispossessed off the ball.

He played a part in conceding the Liverpool penalty, but did well in one instance to skip past Lovren.

Sung-Yeung Ki – 5/10

Ki replaced Britton but failed to help Swansea gain a foothold in the game.

Jay Fulton – 5/10

Fulton came on for Leroy Fer and failed to make an impact on the game.

Liverpool

James Milner scored the winning penalty for Liverpool to seal three points

Lois Karius – 6/10

The 23-year old shot-stopper started ahead of Simon Mignolet in goal for the second consecutive league match. His inclination to stay rooted for crosses definitely needs to be worked on, as was evident in the injury-time indecision that could have easily led to Swansea equalising.

After an initial miskick, he played a delightful ball to Clyne showing a glimpse of his ability. He will get better with games under his belt.

Nathaniel Clyne – 7.5/10

The 25-year old right-back is one of the most consistent performers in Klopp’s side. He was beaten by Borja for the first goal but did well then on to contain Sigurdsson. In the second-half he was a constant outlet in attack providing brilliant delivery from the right wing and tenacious in defence whenever the Swans countered.

Joel Matip – 7/10

The 6’5” centre-half continues to make a strong case for the bargain signing of the season as he overcame early jitters to put on a composed showing at the back and an important attacker during Liverpool set-pieces.

Dejan Lovren – 6/10

The 27-year old centre-half recovered from a viral infection that made him miss the previous league match and looked short on confidence. He was beaten by Borja in the air off a Sigurdsson free-kick and failed to track the run of Cork in the first-half.

He performed slightly better in the second-half and needs to improve with Klavan pushing him for a starting berth.

James Milner – 7.5/10

After a brace and an outstanding performance last week, Milner looked relatively subdued against Routledge before stepping up along with the rest of the team to peg Swansea back.

He showed his ability and pressing to a good measure in the second-half and then scored an ice-cool penalty late into the game to give Liverpool three points.

Jordan Henderson – 7/10

The Liverpool captain in his 200th PL start, turned a slow start into a dominating performance as the game went on. His improvement coincided with that of the team’s and he provided a dink over the Swansea defence for the Liverpool equaliser.

He has taken brilliantly to his new holding role.

Georginio Wijnaldum – 6.5/10

The Dutch midfielder had a difficult first-half as the Swansea midfield dominated the game. He performed better once Liverpool got a stranglehold on the game and made runs from midfield into the box in the second-half. A low-key performance compared to his recent displays.

Adam Lallana – NA

The English international was subbed off with a groin injury in the 20th minute and was replaced by Daniel Sturridge.

Sadio Mane – 7/10

The PFA Fans’ Premier League Player of the Month for August and September grew into the game after a slow start, and was a constant threat down the right flank as Naughton struggled to contain him.

Jurgen Klopp celebrating a comeback win showing the fighting spirit he has instilled into the team

He was the only Liverpool player who threatened Swansea throughout the game with his pace, directness and trickery. He showed amazing feet and tenacity to keep running at both ends but was unlucky to register a goal or an assist.

Roberto Firmino – 8/10

The Brazilian started once again in the centre-forward role although he was initially shrugged off the ball easily. After the introduction of Sturridge, he was moved to the left wing and troubled Rangel well, and made good runs around the Swans defence. He did well to score the header and then win the penalty for Liverpool’s winner.

His ability to make an impact on off days like these shows how big a player he is for Liverpool.

Philippe Coutinho – 8/10

The little magician continued his fine attacking form after starting slowly. Lallana’s injury meant that Coutinho was shifted to a deeper role and this saw him pull the strings for Liverpool, constantly troubling Swansea with his quality, tracking back for Swansea’s counters and recovering balls off Barrow to prevent Swansea from gaining control.

As Brendan Rodgers once said, Coutinho is the brain of the team.

Substitutes

Daniel Sturridge – 6.5/10

The Liverpool marksman came on for an injured Adam Lallana in the first-half and ran the channels well, creating chances and linking well with his team-mates. He still looks short of his pace and was booked for diving in the first-half.

Emre Can – NA

Can came on late into the game and made a good run into Swans penalty box.

Divock Origi – NA

Origi had little time to make an impact on the game.

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Edited by Staff Editor