Liverpool moved six points clear in the Premier League with a four-goal rout over Newcastle.

Dejan Lovren broke the deadlock on 11 minutes when he pounced on a headed clearance to rifle a half-volley into the roof of Martin Dubravka’s net.

Mere moments into the second half, Mohamed Salah doubled the lead with a penalty after he had been brought down by Magpies defender Paul Dummett.

Xherdan Shaqiri put the game further out of the visitors’ reach on 79 minutes before Fabinho rounded off the win with a header for his first Liverpool goal.

Manchester City’s defeat at Leicester elsewhere on Boxing Day saw the reigning champions lose further ground on Jurgen Klopp’s side in this season’s title race.

Here were the key talking points from Anfield:

Klopp’s wild title ride continues

 

Jurgen Klopp prefers the thrill of the chase as much as the end product.

The Liverpool manager wants his side to enjoy the current journey to the Premier League title instead of worrying about what the end of May could hold.

Right now, that route is looking fairly scenic after comfortably disposing of Newcastle and opening up a six-point advantage in the battle for supremacy.

Rafael Benitez may be forgiven for a wry smile at his former club’s current mood, given how he had overseen a similar situation at Anfield exactly a decade ago.

Unlike the Spaniard’s tenure, however, the potential house of cards moment is continuing to elude Klopp and the current champions-elect.

Lovren finally coming of age

 

Erratic words and performances often go hand-in-hand for Dejan Lovren.

Sometimes the Croatian cannot help himself. When performances improve, there is often a tendency to overstate either his abilities or that of the team overall.

But the times appear to be changing as Lovren produced another resolute performance alongside Virgil van Dijk as well as an opening goal for his efforts.

Not for the first time in his Anfield career, the centre-back found himself in the right place and time to produce a crucial strike in front of The Kop.

Maybe a man self-proclaimed as ‘one of the best defenders in the world’ is finally learning to do his talking on the pitch.

Mind the gap, City

 

It started with a wave but built into a crescendo.

News of Manchester City’s slump at Leicester was greeted with one of the loudest roars Anfield has witnessed in the Premier League since the 2013/14 campaign.

And who could blame them?

City once represented the unassailable obstacle that Liverpool had to topple in their current quest but appeared increasingly ordinary in the past few days.

Seven points now separate the Reds from Pep Guardiola’s reigning champions while new challengers Tottenham are still six adrift in the title race.

The Kop knows more than most that it could still all come crashing down at some point but still wheeled out its title challenge songbook with gusto.

Given how Liverpool are currently playing, they have plenty of reasons for optimism that this year will be unlike the previous, fruitless attempts.

Spot kick wait makes winning sweeter

 

‘Penalty to Liverpool’ was once such a frequent idiom that it became almost expected.

But Anfield has been made to wait for a Premier League spot kick awarded to its hosts. Paul Dummett gifted it a belated Christmas present in hauling down Mohamed Salah.

Unlike his previous missed attempt against Huddersfield in October 2017, there was never any danger of the Egyptian repeating the feat this time around.

A lot has happened in the 424 days since Salah was tasked with stepping up from 12 yards but an end to the hoodoo was a more than welcome bonus.