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Liverpool continued their impressive build-up to the new Premier League season by routing Sevilla 4-1 at Anfield on Sunday afternoon, with Luis Diaz netting twice for the hosts.
Diogo Jota opened the scoring with a brilliant volley with his weaker left foot after half an hour of play in the Merseyside sunshine before putting Diaz away to fire home the Reds’ second. The winger struck again just before the break after some excellent play from Jota, again, and Dominik Szoboszlai.
Sevilla pulled a goal back through Peque but Trey Nyoni came off the bench to put even more gloss on another accomplished performance from Arne Slot’s team, after wins over Real Betis, Arsenal and Manchester United.
Below, GOAL runs through all of the winners and losers from Liverpool’s latest pre-season victory…
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GettyWINNER: Luis Diaz
Despite almost constant speculation over Luis Diaz’s future, the Colombian is still at Anfield less than a week before the start of the new season – and the great news is that he looks as happy as he’s ever been.
If there’s been one criticism of Diaz since he arrived from Porto in January 2022, it’s that he’s sometimes disappointed with his end product. The 27-year-old always does so much good work on the ball – he’s easily the most devastating dribble at the club – but his final ball can often let him down, while he only scored eight Premier League goals last season. Granted, that’s not a bad tally but it’s not good enough for a player blessed with so much talent.
It was extremely heartening, then, to see Diaz net twice at Anfield. His second strike may have been a tap-in but his first goal was outstanding, with the forward cutting inside onto his preferred right foot before smashing the ball home.
Liverpool fans are entitled to expect much more of that kind of emphatic finishing this term.
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GettyLOSER: Darwin Nunez
There’s been an awful lot of talk about Arne Slot potentially bringing the best out of Darwin Nunez, given the Dutchman transformed Santiago Gimenez into a prolific striker at Feyenoord, and that may well prove the case, but Diogo Jota remains Liverpool’s best finisher and he simply has to start up front in next weekend’s Premier League opener at Ipswich.
The Portuguese forward was immense here, breaking the deadlock with a technically outstanding left-footed volley that evoked memories of Robbie Fowler before playing a pivotal role in both of Luis Diaz’s goals.
The big question, of course, is whether Jota can stay fit for an entire season. If he does, though, he could easily score 20-plus Premier League goals for the first time in his career, as the 27-year-old looks like the perfect player to spearhead Slot’s attack.
Nunez – and Cody Gakpo – will get plenty of chances to stake a claim for a starting spot but, after this Jota masterclass, the Uruguayan should be very, very worried right now.
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GettyWINNER: Trey Nyoni
Liverpool have done a decent job trying to quell the excitement surrounding Trey Nyoni, given the club’s youngest ever FA Cup player only turned 17 in June, but there’s simply no hiding the midfielder’s potential.
Nyoni scored less than five minutes after being introduced against Seville, showcasing his fantastic technique and composure by getting his body over the ball before driving it into the back of the net.
The England Under-18 international obviously has plenty to work on. Physically, he still doesn’t look ready for the rigours of the Premier League but his talent is obvious. Perhaps even more impressively, he already plays as if he belongs at this level and is just so positive in everything he does.
Leicester were devastated by losing Nyoni to Liverpool last year – Sunday showed why.
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GettyWINNER: Arne Slot
Arne Slot’s first game in charge of Liverpool at Anfield couldn’t have gone much better. A clean sheet obviously would have been nice but the former Feyenoord coach will have been delighted with how his side controlled the game and their almost incessant attacking threat.
Truth be told, there were no real negatives. Dominik Szoboszlai struggled at times during the first half to impose himself in the No.10 role but the Hungarian then showed what he can bring to the party by running beyond his forward to latch onto Jota’s through-ball before leaving Diaz with the simplest of finishes.
Trent Alexander-Arnold caused all sorts of problems with his crossing and passing, while Kostas Tsimikas once again showed why he should prove an excellent understudy to Andy Robertson.
Richard Hughes & Co. are still looking to make their first signing of the summer but, ahead of next weekend’s trip to Portman Road, Liverpool are in fine fettle after a very encouraging pre-season programme. This may only have been a friendly but Anfield undoubtedly likes the look of Slot’s side.
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