Mohamed Salah continued his fine start to life at Liverpool with a brace to down Southampton in a 3-0 win.

In a first half dominated by the Reds, the Egypt international opened the scoring with a superb curling shot past Fraser Forster from 25 yards out.

He added to that tally just before the break, running onto the end of a superb Philippe Coutinho through ball to slot home and double both his and his side’s tally for the afternoon.

Coutinho added his name to the scoresheet in the second half, turning home the rebound from Roberto Firmino’s saved effort to wrap up maximum points.

Here were the main talking points from Anfield:

Salah on fast track to Anfield greatness

 

Of all the Premier League summer signings, Mohammed Salah is surely at the top of the list and has continued his blistering start to life at Liverpool.

While his first goal was a superb individual effort, the second came from the kind of intelligent running that only the best players are truly capable.

Salah has now managed nine goals in the English top flight, a tally that sees him top its scoring charts as well as targeting a place in Anfield history.

He is now the first Liverpool player to ever manage such a tally, with even Robbie Fowler only managing eight in his first 12 league games in a Red shirt.

If Salah continues in this vein, he’ll quickly find his name among the Liverpool deities too.

A 50/50 audition for Van Dijk

 

There’s no denying Liverpool want Virgil Van Dijk so this was the perfect chance for the Southampton man to strengthen that desire.

The Dutchman will have been keen to show the Reds what they were missing here and he managed to do succeed in that aim, albeit only just.

Quick off the mark and calm with the ball at his feet, Van Dijk is the epitome of the modern centre-back and would slot seamlessly into Liverpool’s back line.

However he was caught out on several occasions as a result of his eagerness to press forward, one such instance leading directly to Liverpool’s second goal.

That in no way took away from a generally sound showing but it may have convinced Klopp to add a backup option to his plans should he decide to pursuit Van Dijk again.

No Matip, no problem

 

For most Liverpool fans, the thought of a centre-back pairing of Ragnar Klavan and Dejan Lovren is enough to bring about nightmares.

To say that the duo has a long way to convincing Anfield they are good enough would be an understatement.

However their performances in this game will have gone some way to erasing the lingering doubts about them.

Both Klavan and Lovren were calm and composed when called upon; dealing with Southampton’s attacks with relative ease, ensuring Simon Mignolet enjoyed a trouble-free afternoon.

The pair will have to prove themselves against greater attacking teams than Southampton to convince Liverpool fans but their combined display here offered some hope for the future.

Klopp keeps Gomez in check

 

After impressing for England over the international break, Joe Gomez would have expected to find himself in the starting eleven for Liverpool this weekend.

Indeed, the absence of Joel Matip, who missed the game with an abductor injury, had most feeling the young defender would finally be given his chance at centre back.

Instead it will have been a surprise to him, and many inside Anfield, to see his name among the substitutes instead.

Was this an attempt by Klopp to keep Gomez from getting ahead of himself after the waves of appreciation that have rolled his way in recent weeks?

Or was it simply a precautionary tactic to avoid the 20-year-old suffering burnout? The more cynical would suggest it was the former.