Tottenham debt owed for devastating Diaz
Tottenham Hotspur have already done Liverpool a recent favour with the surprise win at Manchester City that rekindled the title race.
But there’s a potentially more long-term reason for which the Reds should be grateful of the Londoners.
After all, had Tottenham not made a move for Luis Diaz towards the end of the January transfer window, there’s every chance the player would still be at Porto.
And that, given the outstanding fashion in which the Colombian has started life at Anfield, would have been to the detriment of Liverpool ’s quadruple quest.
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David Moyes revealed this week West Ham had also expressed interest in the player, and his team witnessed first-hand the devastation Diaz can wreak.
Powerful, fast and direct, the winger also possesses fine close control and his wiry frame makes him difficult to knock off the ball.
That was all demonstrated in his best moment, a barnstorming first-half 50-yard run only ended by a foul from Kurt Zouma, the West Ham defender then mercilessly taunted by the home crowd and in particular the fan in the Main Stand holding a huge inflatable cat head with the message “Kick me” on it.
Diaz’s injury-time substitution prompted a standing ovation. Anfield knows a good player when it sees one.
Keita shows another side
It all started at Liverpool in this fixture for Naby Keita, given his Reds debut when the Hammers visited back in August 2018.
The Guinean has subsequently travelled a rollercoaster more topsy-turvy than most in Jurgen Klopp’s squad, epitomised by a Wembley experience that saw him initially overlooked from the starting line-up, then thrust into action by Thiago Alcantara’s injury and finally substituted long before the dramatic penalty shoot-out.
Having missed out against Norwich City in midweek, Keita was back in the engine room here.
And he made game-changing contributions at both ends.
The first showcased his vision and passing ability, taking possession in an advanced position and clipping a floated, diagonal pass over the head of Nikola Vlasic into the path of Trent Alexander-Arnold, whose mishit shot was steered in by Sadio Mane.
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Then, as West Ham pressed during the second half, Keita was initially unable to reach Mark Noble’s pass towards Michail Antonio but then sprinted back 30 yards to block the West Ham forward’s eventual shot.
Certainly, the pat on the back he received from a relieved Alisson Becker was much deserved.
With Fabinho unusually inconsistent, Keita’s defensive capabilities – at times doubted during his Anfield career – were required. And Liverpool and Jurgen Klopp were thankful for it.
Salah grumbles as Mane gets reward
Mohamed Salah was not impressed.
The Egyptian could be spotted muttering to himself as he walked slowly off the pitch after his number appeared on the fourth official’s board with 11 minutes remaining.
This was a strange evening for Salah, impressive first half and defensively dutiful after the break but increasingly single-minded with his decision-making going forward.
His disgruntlement was no doubt as much over his own performance than anything else.
Last weekend, it had been Sadio Mane showing obvious signs of discontent as he was replaced at an almost identical moment in the Carabao Cup final win over Chelsea at Wembley.
Mane had done well as the central striker, putting in a shift in which he was happy to do the dirty work.
It was the same here. And he gained his reward here on 27 minutes, alert to nip in behind Craig Dawson and just about onside to divert Trent Alexander-Arnold’s mishit shot beyond Lukasz Fabianski.
A 12th Premier League goal of the season, only Salah has scored more in the top flight.
Liverpool have now beaten West Ham more than any other club in the Premier League era, becoming the fourth club to achieve 600 triumphs in the division.
All that matters, though, is those three points. The November loss to West Ham has been avenged.
