Premier League 2018/19: 3 reasons why Liverpool won 4-0 against West Ham United

Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool started their Premier League campaign with an emphatic 4-0 win over West Ham United. A brace from Sadio Mane and goals from Mohamed Salah and Daniel Sturridge helped The Reds complete the rout against the beleaguered visitors.

The hosts started the first half in a positive fashion, creating plenty of opportunities and finally broke the deadlock in the 19th minute after last season's golden boot winner, Mo Salah, tapped in from an Andy Robertson cross. Liverpool doubled their lead on the stroke of half-time with Sadio Mane tapping home from Milner's assist.

Liverpool took control of the game in the second half and punished an unaware West Ham rearguard after Mane slotted the ball past Lukasz Fabianski in the 53rd minute. The hosts completed the rout after Daniel Sturridge scored from close range two minutes from time.

We take a look at the reasons why Liverpool secured a comfortable win over West Ham.

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#1 Liverpool's front three start off from where they finished

Sadio Mane's brace helps Liverpool secure three points

Liverpool's attacking trio of Mo Salah, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino started off from where they left, which ultimately resulted in the hosts securing a dominating win against West Ham at Anfield.

Salah, Mane and Firmino constantly made runs behind the West Ham defence which resulted in the back four being caught out of position on countless occasions.

Mane got the better of Declan Rice on numerous occasions, allowing the wing backs and midfielders create a number of chances and exploit space.

Moreover, Michail Antonio ignored his defensive duties which left a huge gap on the right hand side, allowing Andy Robertson to bomb forward and assist Salah for the first goal.

West Ham were caught napping at the back as Mane tapped in from James Milner's assist in the dying seconds of the first half.

The visitors were undone with some more shoddy defending in the second half as Firmino teed up Mane for Liverpool's third. West Ham's lack of concentration and Roberto Firmino's tireless work rate resulted in Salah, Mane having acres of space to exploit.

The front three did a commendable job in taking their chances, catching the West Ham defence unaware in most parts of the game, thereby helping the hosts secure a comfortable 4-0 win.

#2 A disciplined performance from Liverpool's midfield and defence

Michail Antonio struggled against a resolute Liverpool midfield and defense.

Liverpool was often criticised for not having a proper understanding between their defence and midfield which resulted in them losing control of the game, throwing away leads and losing points from winning positions in the previous season.

But their performance against West Ham at Anfield shows how much the midfield and defence have improved from last season.

The back four of Trent Alexander-Arnold, Joe Gomez, Virgil Van Dijk and Andy Robertson worked in tandem with Liverpool's midfield triumvirate of Gini Wijnaldum, James Milner and Naby Keita which resulted in them snuffing out a number of advances from West Ham's attack.

Wijnaldum operated as the No.6 in the first half, sprayed a number of forward passes and impressed with some astute defensive positioning, thereby breaking up a number of West Ham's attacking moves. The Dutch international finished the game with an outstanding pass accuracy rate of 92%.

Milner impressed with his work rate and maintained Liverpool's flow in the attack, ending the game with a pass accuracy rate of 93%, making three key passes. Naby Keita also impressed on his debut, running at West Ham's defence and complemented Liverpool's front three very well.

Coming to the back four, the full-backs attacked with some swagger and did not ignore their defensive responsibilities which ultimately resulted in West Ham having little joy on the ball. The Centre Halves, Joe Gomez and Virgil Van Dijk marshaled Arnautovic with great aplomb, with the Austrian cutting a frustrated figure throughout the game.

Overall, a much-improved understanding between these two units helped Liverpool prevent West Ham's attackers from inflicting damage with the hosts securing all three points.

#3 Naby Keita steals the show with a stellar performance in midfield

Naby Keita impressed on his debut for Liverpool

While Liverpool's front three impressed with some flamboyant attacking football, one man stole the show with his sublime debut performance for Liverpool. That man is none other than Naby Keita. The former RB Leipzig man showed what Liverpool's midfield was missing during the previous season.

Known for his fearless style of play, Naby Keita drove at the heart of West Ham's defence and showcased an intrepid performance. Many a time, Liverpool's midfield has been criticized for being too static, often choosing to play sideways, rather than playing between the lines.

In Keita, Liverpool has got an engine who likes to run at opposition defences, thereby creating a wealth of opportunities for his side.

This was seen when he ran through West Ham's midfield and created space on his left for Andy Robertson during the buildup to Salah's goal in the first half.

Keita recovered possession on countless occasions with his impressive tackling, positioning and used his vast expanse of energy to take up vital positions during Liverpool's transition from defence to attack. His well-forged understanding with Sadio Mane came to the fore as the duo absolutely terrorized the visitors with their attacking prowess.

This performance shows why he is highly rated by Klopp, fans and pundits across the globe. With more time and understanding of the league’s demands, Keita is well equipped to take Liverpool’s already scintillating attack to a whole new level.