Liverpool ended Napoli’s flawless Champions League record with victory at Anfield but still had to settle for second place in Group A.

Liverpool never looked remotely like securing the four-goal winning margin they would have needed against Napoli, who have exerted complete domination over the group, but these three points will act as a real boost to morale.

Thiago Alcantara brought a save from Napoli keeper Alex Meret in the first half, while Napoli thought they had broken the deadlock after the break only for defender Leo Ostigard’s header from a free-kick to be ruled out for offside after a lengthy video assistant referee (VAR) examination.

A game of few chances looked to be heading for a draw but Liverpool snatched the win when Mohamed Salah forced home a close-range finish with five minutes to go, with Nunez sealing the deal in added time.

Konate shows his class

The vulnerability of Liverpool’s defence, not helped by a struggling midfield, has been one of the features of their disappointing start to the season but Ibrahima Konate showed what they have been missing as they confirmed a slot in the last 16 of the Champions League.

Konate suffered a pre-season knee injury that forced him to miss the start of the campaign, then he was sidelined again by a further muscle problem that saw Liverpool’s rearguard struggle badly without him.

The 23-year-old France defender returned against the formidable Napoli attack and gave an outstanding display as Liverpool looked a far more secure proposition than they have in recent times.

Konate’s defensive quality alongside Virgil van Dijk kept the dangerous Victor Osimhen at bay, showing composure, pace and physical presence as Napoli suffered the rare taste of defeat.

True, Napoli were not at their most destructive and knew it would take something truly special from Liverpool to turn this group on its head, but the class demonstrated by Konate illustrated exactly why manager Jurgen Klopp will hope this talented young defender can now have an injury-free run for the rest of the season.

More to follow.

Player of the match

RamsayCalvin Ramsay

with an average of 7.48

Liverpool

1. Squad number22Player nameRamsay

   Average rating

   7.48

2. Squad number27Player nameNúñez

   Average rating

   7.41

3. Squad number28Player nameFábio Carvalho

   Average rating

   6.86

4. Squad number1Player nameAlisson

   Average rating

   6.80

5. Squad number9Player nameRoberto Firmino

   Average rating

   6.76

6. Squad number43Player nameBajcetic

   Average rating

   6.75

7. Squad number5Player nameKonaté

   Average rating

   6.71

8. Squad number21Player nameTsimikas

   Average rating

   6.62

9. Squad number6Player nameThiago Alcántara

   Average rating

   6.59

10. Squad number19Player nameElliott

    Average rating

    6.51

11. Squad number4Player namevan Dijk

    Average rating

    6.47

12. Squad number7Player nameMilner

    Average rating

    6.32

13. Squad number3Player nameFabinho

    Average rating

    6.20

14. Squad number17Player nameJones

    Average rating

    6.17

15. Squad number66Player nameAlexander-Arnold

    Average rating

    6.08

16. Squad number11Player nameMohamed Salah

    Average rating

    5.97

Napoli

1. Squad number77Player nameKvaratskhelia

   Average rating

   5.89

2. Squad number9Player nameOsimhen

   Average rating

   5.58

3. Squad number55Player nameÖstigard

   Average rating

   5.46

4. Squad number3Player nameKim Min-Jae

   Average rating

   5.39

5. Squad number68Player nameLobotka

   Average rating

   5.35

6. Squad number21Player namePolitano

   Average rating

   5.33

7. Squad number99Player nameZambo Anguissa

   Average rating

   5.33

8. Squad number17Player nameOlivera

   Average rating

   5.30

9. Squad number22Player nameDi Lorenzo

   Average rating

   5.26

10. Squad number91Player nameNdombélé

    Average rating

    5.26

11. Squad number1Player nameMeret

    Average rating

    5.23

12. Squad number11Player nameLozano

    Average rating

    4.57

13. Squad number20Player nameZielinski

    Average rating

    4.45

14. Squad number7Player nameElmas

    Average rating

    4.41

15. Squad number81Player nameRaspadori

    Average rating

    4.40

16. Squad number18Player nameSimeone

    Average rating

    4.31

Sourced From BBC