Diogo Jota scored his first hat-trick of the season as Liverpool steamrolled Atalanta 5-0 to maintain their perfect start in the Champions League.
Liverpool were able to build on their perfect start to the Champions League as they humbled Atalanta away from home with a 5-0 victory, which by no means flatters their top-notch performance.
The Reds came in with one motive, and it was clear from the get-go, as they started to create within the first minute onwards. The first nail in the coffin came from Diogo Jota in the 16th minute, and the bullets did not stop firing till the end. Jota was able to help Liverpool double their lead entering into the half-time break.
GET IN! BIG WIN REDS ?
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) November 3, 2020
During this time, the hosts created next to nothing, with only Luis Muriel leading the charge, but unable to produce that final product for the home side.
Duvan Zapata took over the job in the second half, but could only come as close as hitting the inside of the post, as the visitors hit three more with Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane getting in on the action while Jota got his first hat-trick in the reds of the Merseyside. And here, at The Hard Tackle, we run the rule over the Liverpool players following their emphatic win over Atalanta on Tuesday.
Alisson: 6/10
Alisson did not have an awful lot to do in this game, and made two saves off Luis Muriel’s attempts, and looked shaky on both attempts. Even though Atalanta created multiple chances, none of them was enough to test the Brazilian. Was only called into sweat-breaking action by Zapata in the second half, and did enough to deny him.
Trent Alexander-Arnold: 7.5/10
With Robin Gosens out injured, Trent Alexander-Arnold did not have to deal with many threats on his flank. It eventually paved the way for him to constantly push up the pitch, on the right-hand side and he was rewarded for his efforts with an assist in the first half of the game.
Rhys Williams: 7/10
Never an easy task to deal with two imposing attackers in Muriel and Duvan Zapata, no less a teenager. Rhys Williams was able to hold his own, though, often coming out as the victor in duels.
Joe Gomez: 7.5/10
Gomez was a continual shield in defence for Liverpool, marshalling everyone in the backline. Vocal throughout, he was also able to register his name on the assist sheet for Diogo Jota’s second of the night.
Was given problems in the last half an hour, however, as Zapata came incredibly close to scoring. But, overall, it was a good defensive performance from a player who has had a disappointing start to the campaign.
First time in over a year where Atalanta has failed to score at home.
Thanks to Rhys Williams and Joe Gomez.
Monsters. pic.twitter.com/B7Gw4U4Ltp
— Nasir (@LFCNxsir) November 3, 2020
Andrew Robertson: 7/10
Robertson was pinned back by the intensive attacking on the flank led by Hans Hateboer. However, he did not give in at any moment and made several interceptions to halt play for the visitors.
Curtis Jones: 8/10
19-year-old Curtis Jones has not let Liverpool feel the absence of Thiago, who is yet to recover from injury. Jones was a creative force in attack, making two key passes; and displayed his incredible work-rate by dropping deep and forcing turnovers from the leaky Atalanta midfield.
Jordan Henderson: 7.5/10
Starting in defensive midfield, Henderson was responsible for starting loads of attacks caused by turnovers. He was able to find the quick attackers in space often through his incredible long passing and barely gave the ball away.
Georginio Wijnaldum: 5.5/10
It has been far from an ideal start for Georginio Wijnaldum this season, and this game perfectly embodied it. The Dutchman was wasteful on the ball and often failed to pick passes. Additionally, he looked clumsy in defence, giving away too many fouls for the Reds. Lucky to escape with just a yellow.
Mohamed Salah: 8.5/10
Mohamed Salah often looked like the disjointed piece in the front three as Jota and Mane were able to combine well in the final third. Despite that, Salah showed tremendous attacking work-rate and capped off his performance with a goal and an assist. Could have added to it, only to be denied by Marco Sportiello.
Diogo Jota: 10/10
Replacing Roberto Firmino was never going to be easy, but Jota did it in a different way, constantly threatening the Atalanta defence with his blistering pace. While he was able to exploit the massive gap left by the opposition, take nothing away from his second goal as he brought down the ball with his left foot, striking it with his right on the half volley.
⚽️ ⚽️ ⚽️
Our hat-trick hero ? pic.twitter.com/4c6xFReg0c
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) November 3, 2020
Sadio Mane: 9/10
Much like Salah, Mane put on a brilliant attacking shift but coupled that up with some really intense pressing, which helped him score one, while he set up another. Also won a number of dribbles throughout the course of the game, thereby keeping the Atalanta defenders on their toes.
SUBSTITUTES
Naby Keita: 6/10
Naby Keita was brought on to hold on to their incredible lead and stabilise the game from the centre. Mostly composed on the ball, it is fair to say Keita did that to his best extent.
James Milner: 7/10
Milner took on duties in the left-back slot replacing Andrew Robertson and did well to cover for the Scotsman. Created one chance and held his own against a tired Atalanta front-line.
Roberto Firmino: 5/10
Despite being on the pitch for nearly half an hour, Firmino added next to nothing to the game and one could wonder whether Klopp should persist with Jota even in the Premier League matches.
Neco Williams: 7/10
Despite having just 13 touches of the ball, Williams created a fantastic chance for Salah, which was eventually missed by the Egyptian.
Kostas Tsimikas: N/A
A late replacement for Wjinaldum. Did not do enough to warrant a rating.
