Mohamed Salah struck four goals in Liverpool’s 5-0 hammering of Watford.

Salah opened the scoring after just four minutes at Anfield when he slalomed through the Hornets’ defence and finished past Orestis Karnezis.

The Reds’ top scorer doubled his tally midway through the first half when he met a superb cross by Andy Robertson at the far post to tap home.

After the break, Salah turned provider to set up Roberto Firmino before guaranteeing the match ball with another jinking run for Liverpool’s fourth.

He rounded off a devastating display with five minutes remaining as he smashed home a fifth for Jurgen Klopp’s side as they returned to second in the Premier League.

Here were the key talking points from Anfield:

Klopp shows his ruthless side

 

Jurgen Klopp will have been furious about many things following the defeat Manchester United last week and several of his players bore the brunt of it here.

Trent Alexander-Arnold, Dejan Lovren and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain all found themselves dropped after disappointing displays.

It was a sign that Liverpool’s manager is not willing to accept anything but the best from his players.

Alexander-Arnold is likely to be given a second chance, Klopp knows he is a youngster with a bright future. Lovren and Oxlade-Chamberlain, however, may find they have work on to earn their own places back.

Being dropped here was a show that there are no guarantees of a place at Anfield these days.

Reds shine in all weathers

 

When Liverpool scouted Roberto Firmino and Mohammed Salah, they will have likely been worried about how they’d fare in the dark days of British winter.

Afterall, Merseyside in March is a far cry from their home countries of Brazil and Egypt. How silly those fears look now.

With the snow falling all around Anfield, they continued doing what they do best, scoring goals for Liverpool.

Four for Salah took him to 36 for the campaign and means no Liverpool player has scored more in their debut campaign, while one for Firmino recorded a career-best of 23.

It seems that even sub-zero temperatures cannot half the red-hot form of this pairing.

Gomez edges into right-back lead

 

One man’s misfortune can often be another’s gain and that may prove to be the case for Joe Gomez.

Alexander-Arnold’s mauling at the hands of Marcus Rashford in last weekend’s Old Trafford clash meant he was handed his chance to impress against Watford.

He did just that, with a calm and composed display at right back limiting Richarlison to a bystander role throughout.

When tasked with dealing with Roberto Pereyra in the second half, the result was the same.

It’s a race between Gomez and Alexander-Arnold to make the Liverpool right-back spot their own in the absence of Nathaniel Clyne.

After his performance here, Gomez is now leading that race by a nose.

Doucoure fails his Anfield audition

 

Barely a month ago, Abdoulaye Doucoure claimed Liverpool were among a host of clubs interested in signing him from Watford this summer.

The suggestion was that the Frenchman was being eyed as a replacement for Emre Can, who looks set to depart Anfield at the end of the campaign.

If that is the case, Liverpool may be better spending their money elsewhere. His performance in this game will certainly not have impressed those watching.

Doucoure was a passenger, with Jordan Henderson, James Milner and Georginio Wijnaldum all finding it easy to bypass him in the centre of the park.

Even Can, who left midway through the first half, will have come away with a better rating than his opposite number.

If this was his audition, it is not a role he will be getting anytime soon.