Liverpool carved their way back to the top of the Premier League table after a hard fought 2-1 win over West Ham amidst of various controversies at Upton Park. Brendan Rodgers’ side took the lead thanks to a Steven Gerrard penalty but controversies erupted following referee Antony Taylor’s howler to allow West Ham’s goal to stand after ex Liverpool player Andy Carroll clearly pumped his fists on goalkeeper Simon Mignolet’s forehead.
Liverpool however grabbed full points thanks to Gerrard’s second penalty of the game after West Ham stopper got the ball instead of Jon Flanagan, but the official felt otherwise. The Reds however will not be complaining over the three massive wins and now face Manchester City next Sunday in a potential title decider.
Here are the Liverpool player ratings from Upton Park.
Simon Mignolet: Had an incorrect decision gone against him for letting West Ham’s equalizer to score, but the Belgian had a solid game overall and was also lucky when Carroll struck the post in the second half. Mignolet’s distribution however needs to improve.
Rating: 2.5/5
Jon Flanagan: Had a nightmare of a first half with Diame constantly bullying him on the wings. Did improve in the second half and ‘won’ an undeserved penalty for his side, for no fault of his.
Rating: 2.5/5
Martin Skrtel: Another superb outing for the Slovakian who was omnipresent at the back dealing with aerial threats and also surged forward with great intent when there were spaces to exploit. My man of the match, if not for Raheem Sterling, as he negotiated the Andy Carroll threat to great credibility.
Rating: 4/5
Mamadou Sakho: Good performance on his return but the Frenchman struggled in patches and needs to improve for next week’s crucial encounter against Manchester City at Anfield.
Rating: 2.5/5
Glen Johnson: Offered great support going forward and maintained his shape throughout and barring the one time that Downing got past him by sheer pace, Johnson had a superb outing.
Rating: 3/5
Steven Gerrard: Two penalties with deadly precision that won the game for Liverpool and as usual dictated the tempo of the encounter.
Rating: 3.5/5
Philippe Coutinho: The Brazilian lacked the final ball but had a solid shift in thanks to his deft touches and awareness in midfield.
Rating: 2.5/5
Jordan Henderson: looked out of sorts throughout but given that his side won, Henderson put a determined shift in, but he needs to up his levels with crucial games lined up in the coming weeks.
Rating: 2/5
Raheem Sterling: Impeccable and sublime would be the two words to describe Sterling’s mesmerizing performance tonight. His intelligent runs caused havoc for the home side as they were caught time and again in the channels of space.
Rating: 4/5
Daniel Sturridge: Was way off colour and had a day to forget given his standards. Had no link up with Suarez up front.
Rating: 1.5/5
Luis Suarez: The Uruguayan was unlucky not to score after hitting the post twice but the Hammers defence did a great job to shut him out. Could have easily won another penalty for his side.
Rating: 3.5/5
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