Aston Villa 0-6 Liverpool: 5 Talking Points

Liverpool marked an emphatic 6-0 win against Aston Villa at Villa Park to keep their slim top 4 hopes alive in the EPL. The Reds had six different goal scorers on the day, as Daniel Sturridge opened the scoring in the 16th minute. James Milner added a second in the first half from a floated free-kick against his old club, before they decided to shift to top gear in the second half. Emre Can, Divock Origi, Nathaniel Clyne, and Kolo Toure found the back of the net in the second half, as the Reds could’ve easily scored a couple more. Here are the 5 talking points from the game:

#1 Daniel Sturridge scores on his league return

Daniel Sturridge of Liverpool scores the opening goal

Liverpool always seem to be a different team when Daniel Sturridge is on the pitch, and today it was quite clear again. Sturridge made his first league start since returning from injury, and looked as if he was never away. The 26-year old combined really well with Philippe Coutinho and Roberto Firmino to form a deadly trio up front for Liverpool.

Sturridge opened the scoring in the 16th minute from Philippe Coutinho’s brilliant cross, and came close to adding a second only to be denied by Villa goalkeeper Bunn. He looked threatening and also created a few chances for his teammates. Jurgen Klopp will be hoping to keep him fit for the remainder of the season, as Liverpool still have an outside chance of finishing in the top 4.

#2 Philippe Coutinho in top form

Philippe Coutinho was the star player against Villa

The Brazilian star was the star of the show tonight. Coutinho was in top form against Aston Villa, as he created a couple of goals and tormented the home side. He played a sublime cross to Sturridge for Liverpool’s first goal, and also created the goal for Divock Origi. There are very few playmakers in the league as good as Coutinho when he is in form.

The partnership of Coutinho and Sturridge will be very crucial in the upcoming games, as both seem to understand each other very well. Coutinho created a lot of panic in the Aston Villa defence, and it seemed they had no clue how to stop him until Jurgen Klopp took him off in the 66th minute. Coutinho also seems to be much more confident of playing forward passes with Sturridge in front of him rather than Christian Benteke.

#3 Roberto Firmino continues to shine

Roberto Firmino has been fantastic for Liverpool in recent months

Roberto Firmino was heavily criticised when he struggled in the first half of the season, but since then the Brazilian international hasn't looked back. Firmino always manages to find his teammates in important areas on the pitch, and rarely plays a meaningless pass. What makes him even more special is his positional and spatial awareness, and that was easy to see against Aston Villa.

Firmino created the goal for Emre Can, but he looked very lively on the pitch. His work rate was also impressive, as he made quite a few defensive contributions as well. He now has six goals and six assists to his name this season and is starting to establish himself in the Liverpool team.

#4 Aston Villa - Worst team in the Premier League era?

Aston Villa look set for the drop

Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher described the current Aston Villa team as one of the worst sides he has watched in the Premier League era, and we couldn’t agree less with him. Liverpool looked really sharp tonight, but the Aston Villa players made it much easier for them. There seemed to be no desire and hunger in the Aston Villa players, and they now seem to have accepted they’ve no chance of staying in the Premier League next season.

Remi Garde should be very disappointed with his players, and in games like this, it’s very difficult to blame the manager. It was clear to see the players didn’t even try, and the Liverpool attackers found it extremely easy. Aston Villa look low on confidence, and Remi Garde has a very difficult job on his hands.

#5 Crucial time for Liverpool

Jurgen Klopp will expect his players to stay fit for the rest of the season

The question is, will this game be the moment when things start to turnaround for Liverpool? After a long list of injuries, Liverpool finally have most of their key players back on the pitch and firing again. There is little doubt that the front three of Sturridge, Coutinho, and Firmino can prove to be absolutely lethal, and are capable of causing problems for any Premier League side.

Sturridge’s goal scoring record can’t be questioned, but his injury record can surely be, and Liverpool fans can only pray for a miracle. Liverpool now have two crucial games against Augsburg in the Europa League and against Manchester City in the Capital One Cup final, and Klopp should be delighted to have all his players fit again.