Liverpool held on against Napoli to book a place in the Champions League’s last 16.
Needing to win either one-nil or by two clear goals to progress, Jurgen Klopp’s side headed into their final Group C encounter with their fate clearly outlined.
Mohamed Salah broke the deadlock in the 34th minute after sneaking in behind the visitors’ defence with a rolled finish that crept under David Ospina’s legs.
A fraught second half saw the Reds spurn a succession of chances, with Sadio Mane most guilty, as they braced a belated onslaught from the Serie A outfit.
Napoli were denied a likely equaliser when Alisson made a point-blank stop from substitute Piotr Zielinksi in stoppage time to safeguard Liverpool’s progress.
Here were the key talking points from Anfield:
One is enough for last 16
They say that sometimes one is more than enough, as Liverpool can fully attest.
A Champions League group finale with a formidable Napoli was a less than ideal scenario in which to secure their passage into the competition’s latter stages.
Winning by a two-goal margin seemed more likely than scoring once without reply before kick-off, even given how well-drilled Jurgen Klopp’s charges remain.
Yet a repeat of the heroics of Olympiacos in 2004 was not required at all.
Anfield’s mania on European nights is not for waning but the routine of frantically chasing games in order to secure ‘misson accomplished’ is fading.
Even with a narrow scoreline and a late Napoli onslaught, Liverpool never really looked to be heading anywhere other than the Champions League’s last 16 draw.
Mertens finally gets the message
Maybe now Dries Mertens will understand just what all the fuss was about.
Heading into this clash, the Napoli forward had questioned the significance of playing at Anfield. He did not have much to compare it with, in truth.
Eking out a draw in a Europa League dead rubber against a Liverpool team which had sleepwalked into malaise under Roy Hodgson is hardly a reliable indicator.
The Belgian seemed destined to be cast as the pantomime villain on his latest visit to Merseyside after Virgil van Dijk received a fifth booking for an early foul.
Hostility reigned from both the Liverpool players and the home crowd. In more ways that one, he was given a true experience of Anfield’s power at full tilt.
Salah scales more heights at home
Until recently, Georginio Wijnaldum’s apparent inability to score away from Anfield had become something of a running joke on Merseyside.
The Dutchman may have shaken off that dubious reputation but Mohamed Salah’s decisive opener is further proof that home is where the heart is.
His ninth goal in as many Champions League appearances on home soil saw him edge closer to Steven Gerrard’s leading tally of 14 in the competition.
Salah’s statistics do not end there, though. His overall European return is now tied with Ian Rush on 21 and did so in five games less than the legendary marksman.
A 35th strike from his previous 38 outings in front of the Kop isn’t bad either.
Alisson’s Dudek moment arrives
Klopp’s signing of Alisson has been the greatest triumph of Liverpool’s season to date.
An early bout of mindlessness aside, the Brazil international continues to prove one of the more formidable goalkeepers in Anfield’s recent history.
But he found an unlikely link with a less illustrious predecessor when he thwarted Arkadiusz Milik from point-blank range in the dying seconds of stoppage time.
For more than a few, memories of Jerzy Dudek’s double save from Andriy Shevchenko in the 2005 Champions League final instantly sprung to mind.
Dudek knew little about the AC Milan striker’s efforts as they cannoned back off his body but it proved a turning point which swung momentum back in his side’s favour.
In throwing himself at the mercy of Milik, Alisson could well have written his own page in another promising chapter of Liverpool’s rich continental history.