Liverpool player ratings, winners and losers vs Inter as Ryan Gravenberch and one more excellent

SAN SIRO, MILAN // Liverpool beat Inter Milan in Italy thanks to a late Dominik Szoboszlai penalty kick, helping Arne Slot to a huge lift after a tough period for the Dutchman.

After another goalless first half, Liverpool tried to move ahead and take advantage of being on top. Ibrahima Konate had seen a goal ruled out for offside, and it was the Reds looking most likely to break the deadlock, but Arne Slot needed a bit more from his attackers.

Florian Wirtz was thrown on and the German won a contentious penalty. While there is more work to be done, this was a big result, and an impressive one for Liverpool.

Winners

Arne Slot, it would be fair to say, was a winner here. For all the chatter that Mohamed Salah has caused lately, this was an improved performance from several players, who are clearly still playing for him, even if there is lots more work still to do.

Ryan Gravenberch was better than he has been for a while, and the whole Liverpool team looked more solid in the changed formation. Alexis Mac Allister was another one who looked much brighter than has become the norm.

Losers

Had he not chosen to go nuclear at the weekend with his comments about Liverpool and Slot, Salah would have almost certainly been in the starting line-up for this game. Instead, he was watching along from home.

What he saw was a better performance from the team, albeit one where the attackers looked like they needed a bit of extra sparkle and creativity to tee them up.

Player ratings

Alisson Becker (7). Didn't have loads to do but made a good save from Lautaro Martinez late in the first half. Better distribution than he has shown at times in the last few weeks.

Joe Gomez (7). Put the ball out of play with a couple of misplaced passes and his crosses were floated rather than dangerous, but solid defensively. Pretty much what you would expect from him at full-back.

Ibrahima Konate (7). Fortunate to be in the starting XI again after recent performances, but did well on most occasions. Not that good on the ball and unfortunate to see his header ruled out for an Ekitike handball offense, but managed to get through it without making a calamitous error.

Virgil van Dijk (7). A strong showing from the captain, who benefited from the more solid structure around him. Almost caused some danger at a couple of set-pieces.

Andy Robertson (7). Chosen ahead of Milos Kerkez, he was on the end of a hefty tackle early on from Martinez but recovered and played well. Slightly limited going forward aside from one brilliant low cross, but solid at the back.

Dominik Szoboszlai (8). Popping up in the middle and down the right, he was everywhere when it came to off-the-ball stuff, but not often seeing much of the ball where he could be dangerous in the final third. Took the penalty kick really well under pressure

Ryan Gravenberch (8). More than happy to take the ball under pressure and he looked better than he has done frequently this season. This was his best performance for some time.

Alexis Mac Allister (7). Back in the team after dropping to the bench at the weekend, the Argentine was much better than he has been of late. He had some more energy and seemed to excel with more bodies around him to help plug defensive gaps.

Curtis Jones (7). Seemingly enjoying his role in a four-man midfield, Jones was a bright spark going forward, especially early on, and got through loads of running. His influence waned a bit in the second half.

Alexander Isak (5). Paired with Ekitike for the first time in a couple of months, he was lacking sharpness and wasn't covering the ground particularly speedily. Isolated.

Hugo Ekitike (6). Had a couple of flashes in the first half without finding the right final touch to score or a find a teammate and was booked for booting Yann Bisseck. His attempts in the second half were blocked.

Substitutes

Florian Wirtz (6). It looked like a game that was going to require some extra guile and he did provide it. He should suit this system moving forward but it might take some time to get used to it. Fortunate on the penalty, but in the right place to win it.

Conor Bradley (6). Added some more width to the team but bundled into an aerial challenge early on and was a little clumsy.

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