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Liverpool made it six Premier League wins in their first six Premier League games, as they thrashed Southampton 3-0 at Anfield, to further their perfect start to the season. The Reds scored three goals in the first half, and then took their foot off the gas after the interval, as they prepared for tougher tests that lie ahead in the next two weeks, with a controlled display.
A Wesley Hoedt own-goal got things going for Liverpool, as Xherdan Shaqiri ran proceedings in the first half. Joel Matip, starting his first game for Liverpool since March, doubled Liverpool's lead with a fabulous header in the 21st minute, from a Trent Alexander-Arnold corner.
Mo Salah then rounded off the half with his first goal in four games, as he was there to tap home a rebound after a fierce Shaqiri free-kick came off the bar.
Here are some points of discussion from the game.
#5 The "drought" is over
Much has been made and said of Mohamed Salah's supposed lack of form to start the season, but right from the first minute today, the Egyptian was a man on a mission to shut the doubters down. He started in a more central role today, and he was a nightmare for Jannik Vestergaard all afternoon.
Salah's pace is always a threat, even when he isn't really playing well, and Vestergaard found it immensely difficult to deal with, because the Egyptian was actually playing really well. He linked up brilliantly with Roberto Firmino and Shaqiri and should have had more than just the one goal that he ended the afternoon with.
The big Danish centre-back was simply not able to read when Salah would go short to receive a pass, and when he would turn and make the run in behind the defence. Firmino found Salah once, with a delicious ball over the top, that the Egyptian collected and ran at Alex McCarthy.
He was held up by Vestergaard, but with his back to goal, he provided an outrageous flick that dribbled inches wide of the mark. Salah was not to be denied for long though. He gave up free-kick duties to Shaqiri, and when the Swiss thundered a strike against the crossbar, Salah was there to tap in from a yard out.
Salah was always a threat in the second half too, and should have had his second of the game, when he had the ball in the back of the net, off a rebound from James Milner's shot that was cleared off the line. He was denied by the linesman's flag, but replays showed that the ball may have struck a Southampton defender last.
#4 Jurgen Klopp's tactical tweaks work wonders
Anyone that has watched Jurgen Klopp's teams play over the years would know that it is generally difficult to see him employ anything other than a 4-3-3 system. But in this game, it was more a 4-2-3-1, as Shaqiri was employed in a free role behind the much-feared Liverpool front three.
That worked wonders for Liverpool, as they were afforded possession by a Southampton side, that was clearly not comfortable dealing with the pace and movement in the final third. Shaqiri, in particular, was elusive and caused them plenty of problems.
His movement ensured that he was always between the lines while he received passes, and his pace and trickery on the ball ensured that he could provide a presentable threat in the final third as well.
The first goal was a clear example of Shaqiri's cleverness with the ball at his feet. Sadio Mane's through ball to him was beautifully worked, and then the Swiss cut in on to his weaker right foot, and unleashed a shot at goal that struck Shane Long, before ricocheting into the back of the net off the unfortunate Hoedt.
#3 Southampton's midfield didn't do enough
Mark Hughes brought in Oriol Romeu to anchor the Saints' midfield in the hope that he would provide the side with some much-needed steel in the middle of the park.
Clearly, Romeu was there to cut off the space between the lines for a Liverpool side that love to work the ball intricately in the final third. But along with Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Mario Lemina, Romeu could do little, as Liverpool played their way through the Saints' midfield at will, especially in the first half.
The biggest indictment of the midfield failure for Southampton was the fact that Shaqiri ran the show in the first half. Given the position the Swiss was playing in, it was his exact threat that Romeu was brought in to nullify, but he really could not do much.
The cohesiveness and understanding of the Liverpool players shone through, as even a crowded midfield could not get Southampton the control that they would have desired. It also didn't help the plan that they conceded within the first ten minutes, which meant that they had to open themselves up a little more to get anything from the game.
#2 Southampton offered no threat up front
Danny Ings was ineligible to play this game against his parent club, and the Saints sorely missed their top-scorer of the season so far. For all of Shane Long's good attributes, his goalscoring record is rather abysmal.
He has now scored just two goals in his last 62 games for club and country. Let that sink in. Two goals. In SIXTY-TWO games. So, it was always going to be a difficult afternoon for them against a Liverpool defence that has not conceded at Anfield since February.
It was not that they didn't try to attack either. They got into plenty of decent positions that would've allowed them to cause a discernible threat to the Liverpool goal, but it was just a little bit of quality that was missing.
In the first half, Southampton were afforded plenty of space on their right wing, as Nathan Redmond and Cedric Soares put in quite a few testing balls into the box. But most of them were met by a Liverpool head or foot.
There were some instances when all that was lacking was the striker's instinct. If Long had gambled and gotten in front of the man guarding the front-post, he could've made himself a few opportunities, but in the end, it was not to be for Southampton.
#1 The Liverpool machine keeps rolling on
Liverpool had never won their first seven matches of a season in all competitions, prior to this one. Now, they have, and it is truly heady days at Anfield. The Reds look a well-oiled machine, and the frightening thing for certain opposition teams would be that they are nowhere near their full stride just yet.
This Liverpool side are different to any that we've seen in recent years, and it is only just getting started. Of course, this start means nothing if they don't carry on the good work they've done so far, but there are so many positives for Klopp already.
They had last conceded a home goal in February, but Virgil van Dijk had played all of those games. Here, he was taken off before the hour-mark with a rib injury, but his replacement, Joe Gomez ensured there were no hiccups at the back, as he mopped up everything that was thrown at him.
Liverpool have a huge fortnight ahead of them, with league games against Chelsea and Manchester City coming up either side of a Champions League trip to Napoli. Klopp will know that there is work to be done to gain maximum points out of those games, but if anything, those teams will fear Liverpool more than the Reds being wary of them.
