Five Things Learnt From Liverpool’s Fantastic 4-1 Victory Over Sevilla

Liverpool defeated Sevilla 4-1 at Anfield on Sunday in Arne Slot’s first game as head coach. Here are some takeaways from the win.

Liverpool had many returning players who had not played in the previous friendlies. Arne Slot did not ease them back in, instead starting Virgil van Dijk, Alisson Becker, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Luis Diaz, and Alexis MacAllister right away.

Not only that, but each played for more than an hour. Prior to the game, Slot stated that it was critical that they play a lot of minutes in order to be ready to face Ipswich the following weekend.

There were many eyes on Alexander-Arnold here. He was one of Jurgen Klopp’s standout players, but he had a disappointing summer in England, where he was barely used.

So, how would he perform under a manager other than Klopp? It did not take him long to respond.

Alexander-Arnold had some excellent moments here, including an assist for Diogo Jota at the half-hour mark. He also had other opportunities to assist, but his efforts were thwarted by poor forward decisions.

Nobody should be concerned, then. Alexander-Arnold demonstrated his passing ability and appeared to be at ease in the system in the first fixture of the new era.

Liverpool were fantastic in the first half. Mohamed Salah looked electric, the passing was fluid, and the Reds eventually made a breakthrough.

Following Alexander-Arnold’s pinpoint cross, Diogo Jota scored a sensational volley to open the scoring after 30 minutes. Then came a second: Luis Diaz rifled one into the top corner.

And then a third! Our favourite of the bunch, too. Alisson had the ball almost on his own goalline before making a pass up the pitch. It was knocked down and passed in behind for Dominic Szoboszlai to run on to, who simply laid it across goal for Diaz to score his second.

Front to back in four passes and only seconds. More of that please.

So, can Trey Nyoni play anywhere? He came on as a left-winger and looked right at home from the moment he took the pitch.

It did not take him long to score either, as the teenager had the ball fall back to him about 10 yards from the goal. He rifled it into the far corner from the Kop, restoring Liverpool’s three-goal lead.

Nyoni appears to be an incredible prospect, and we can not wait to see him develop with the Reds. This could be a huge season.

Fans should be excited, given that this was the first game under Slot for the majority of the starting lineup. This is what a returning-to-fitness team can do from the start, and there is no reason to believe it will not get better from here.

The football looks exciting, the players look creative, and it was a lot of fun. Roll on the Premier League games; it appears we are in for a treat.