Second half goals earned Liverpool a vital away win against RB Leipzig.

Mohamed Salah opened the scoring in the Champions League last 16 first leg tie when he pounced on Marcel Sabitzer’s loose ball before finishing coolly.

Soon after, the Reds doubled their lead as Nordi Mukiele misjudged a long ball, allowing Sadio Mane to steal possession and fire past Peter Gulacsi.

Jurgen Klopp’s side largely had the better of the game, which was played in Budapest, Hungary rather than Leipzig due to COVID-19 travel restrictions.

Here were the key talking points from the Puskas Arena:

Klopp schools Nagelsmann

 

Much was made pre-match of the meeting between the two managers as Jurgen Klopp faced off against a compatriot who is 20 years his junior.

Julian Nagelsmann has won plenty of plaudits for the variation of Klopp’s gegenpressing he has implemented in a short space of time at RB Leipzig.

Even away from the Red Bull Arena, where they’ve won 13 of 15 this term, the side with the Bundesliga’s meanest defence still looked a serious threat.

But Klopp and his Liverpool side ripped up the recent form book, dominating their German counterparts in almost every department during this clash.

Andy Robertson and Roberto Firmino’s efforts were two of many chances a resurgent Reds didn’t take while Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah also went close.

By contrast, Leizpig’s only sights at goal came from Dani Olmo’s early header, Alisson denying Christopher Nkunku in a one-on-one and a late Hwang Hee-chan miss.

At the tender managerial age of 33, Nagelsmann has already impressed with Hoffenheim and Leipzig, and seems destined for the game’s highest echelons eventually.

Perhaps, then, this was the master getting the better of his apprentice, as Klopp’s game plan nullified Leipzig perfectly to put one foot in the last eight.

Calmer Alisson steps up

 

If anything has characterised Liverpool’s recent domestic woes, it’s been erraticism of their usually so reliable goalkeeper Alisson.

The Brazilian’s wayward clearances gifted Manchester City two goals, while his mix-up with Ozan Kabak presented Leicester with the lead last Saturday.

But at Budapest’s Puskas Arena, he claimed the 50th clean sheet of an esteemed Liverpool career in an altogether far more composed performance.

Alisson first diverted Olmo’s header onto the woodwork, then stood tall to deny Nkunku a goal that would have put Leipzig ahead just after the break.

He claimed a looping late free kick from Nkunku comfortably and while his distribution wasn’t always immaculate, it was still a sign of clear improvement.

One out-rushing clearance during the first half particularly did not smack of a goalkeeper who is short of confidence after a difficult last few weeks.

It was a key contributory factor to a far more serene Liverpool defence which, though not massively troubled, never looked ruffled as they have of late.

Henderson still belongs in midfield

 

It would be unfair to say Jordan Henderson didn’t play well in central defence, given how little defending Liverpool had to do in Hungarian capital.

But with Nat Phillips and Ben Davies both among the 12-man substitutes’ bench, it still felt surprising to see the midfielder get the nod at the back.

Davies admittedly is still bedding in at Anfield and only just recovered from injury, but Phillips has generally impressed when given his chance this year.

Henderson and Ozan Kabak looked far more comfortable with each other than at Leicester but Liverpool’s captain still belongs in his natural midfield home.

Their current centre-back options may only feel like sticking plasters on a gaping wound, but they are at least natural defenders, unlike Henderson.

Fielding Phillips or Davies next to Kabak would fit square pegs into square holes and in turn allow Liverpool’s depleted midfield to look more familiar.

It may be an avenue worth pursuing for Klopp against more imposing opponents than Leipzig ultimately proved to be in this encounter.

One leg is better than two

 

What helped make the latter stages of last season’s Champions League so thrilling was that, due to time constraints, two-legged ties were scrapped.

With smaller margins for error, it led to more end-to-end football played at breakneck speed, rather than slow-burners churned out over 180 minutes.

Playing in Hungary erased any home advantage for Leipzig, anyway, but maybe sticking to the one-leg system would make sense for this year at least.

This was already Liverpool’s 11th game in 2021, while both sides play three more times before the reverse fixture takes place at Anfield on March 10.

A great deal of compromises have needed to be made already in football given the way COVID-19 has forced the schedule to become condensed.

Persisting with the two-legged knockout format, not least when home sides cannot play in their own country, seems superfluous and unnecessary.

In truth, this tie appears done and dusted already to the extent that the second leg feels a game both sides may privately wish they could do without.