After an impressive victory over West Ham United last weekend, Liverpool managed to continue their winning run this week as they put two past Wayne Hennessey to take all three points from their tricky trip to Selhurst Park. Crystal Palace have proven to be a tough team to beat for the Reds recently, but goals from James Milner and Sadio Mane were enough for the Reds to stay within touching distance of Manchester City at the top of the table.
They looked comfortable for most of the night and barring a couple of scares from Wilfried Zaha and Andros Townsend, Liverpool never gave the Eagles a chance in the game. There were controversial decisions that awarded the visitors a penalty to add to the red card for Aaron Wan-Bissaka but Liverpool were the better side on the night and here are three reasons why this victory on the road was possible:
Virgil van Dijk
The Dutch international has arguably been the best defender in the league since joining Liverpool as he has kept more clean sheets than any other player in that time. He was immense again at Selhurst Park on Monday night, winning everything thrown at him, in and around the box. He won nine aerial duels, most of them against Christian Benteke, thus nullifying the threat. He had a passing accuracy of 92% and he also made a couple of tackles and never gave the Palace attackers a clear shot at Alisson. Surely, he was instrumental in Liverpool taking all three points from this game.
Naby Keita And His Flair
The former Bundesliga man has had an immediate impact in the Premier League and was one of the best players for Liverpool against Palace. He was happy to take on players, and his direct approach was an issue for the Palace side, who were happy to sit back and defend for most of the game. He created a couple of chances, completed 86% of his passes and came close to scoring with two of the three shots he unleashed on target. He added a balance to the Liverpool midfield that will be crucial for the side in games like these in the future.
Keeping Zaha Quiet
Liverpool have often left Selhurst Park with some sad memories with a number of players of the home side elevating their game to greater heights on the day. Former Manchester United star Wilfried Zaha is no stranger to this and he was expected to provide a stern test for the Reds. However, James Milner and Trent Alexander-Arnold did extremely well to keep Zaha’s influence to a minimum. He took two shots, just one on target, and completed five dribbles, out of which he was eventually dispossessed on four different occasions.
Stat Credit: Whoscored.com
