The German coach rotated his side, with Mohamed Salah and Thiago Alacantara starting on the bench while veteran James Milner was included in the starting eleven.
Follow Us
Liverpool produced a fine professional performance to get the better of in-form Newcastle United in the Premier League fixture on Saturday. At St James’ Park, Naby Keita’s first half strike was enough to separate the two sides. The result helped the Reds move to the summit of the standings for time being before Manchester City thrashed Leeds United 4-0 to regain the top spot later on the day. The Premier League title race is heading into a photo finish with the top two teams separated by just one point. Jurgen Klopp’s side is aiming for a quadruple, and with the second leg of the Champions League semi-final coming up next week, the German coach rotated his side, with Mohamed Salah and Thiago Alacantara starting on the bench while veteran James Milner was included in the starting eleven.
Big away win at a tricky place to go, we keep pushing ?#loveitnabylad#YNWA pic.twitter.com/G5kl5osO5U
— James Milner (@JamesMilner) April 30, 2022
Read more:
Jadon Sancho news: Major blow for Manchester United, the winger could be out for the season
“The changes were cool, the selection game is so important” said Liverpool’s manager after making five changes to the side that started last week’s 2-0 home win against Villarreal. “The squad is the only reason why we are where we are. All the boys buy completely into the situation. “The boys that didn’t come on, you should have seen their faces on the final whistle. The group is exceptional, exceptionally talented and really good characters.” Goals from Jordan Henderson’s deflected effort and Sadio Mane’s poke in had helped Liverpool take a two goal cushion going into the away leg at El Madrigal.
Milner played a key role in Liverpool’s winner as the Englishman made a tough but clean tackle on Fabian Schar to win the ball, Jordan Henderson collected the loose ball and released Keita down the right channel. The 27-year-old midfielder played a nice little give-and-go with Diogo Jota before rounding goalkeeper Martin Dubravka and slotting home from six yards. The Newcastle players protested for a foul on the defender, who stayed down for a prolonged period, but the VAR showed the challenge was fair. It was the veteran footballers 24th league appearance this term and he looks fit as ever.
Asked if he had come across a fitter 36-year-old, Klopp said with a smile: “No, but it would be interesting to look at Luka Modric. Is he not 36 as well? It was obviously a good generation. It’s difficult to be fitter than Milly. He’s a role model. I have told him, I can tell the whole world – nothing we have achieved in the last few years would have happened without James Milner, it’s as easy as that. Whether he was on the pitch or not, he’s set standards in a way not a lot of people can set standards, and it educated all of us. Milly played a great game today. I loved this game – and he played a massive part in it.”
Liverpool had already secured the EFL Cup earlier this year, will play Chelsea in the FA cup final next month, four more Premier League games are remaining and have one step in the final of the Champions League. Klopp’s side is very much on track for a rare quadruple and their main strength has been the fitness of the squad. Despite playing so many games, the Reds have managed to keep almost all of the squad fit, barring Roberto Firmino who is out with a minor foot injury. “It was incredibly difficult for the boys today, to be honest; we played two and a half days ago,” he said. “In the circumstances it was a top class performance. We did 100% against a team in top form in a top atmosphere. I’m really happy. For me it’s been a top week.”
Manchester City vs Liverpool: Talking points from the action-packed draw
