Liverpool Begin Arne Slot Era with Comfortable Win Over Ipswich Town

Liverpool kicked off the Arne Slot era with a 2-0 victory over newly promoted Ipswich Town at Portman Road. Kieran McKenna’s side frustrated Liverpool in the first half, but a five-minute spell in the second half saw Diogo Jota and Mohamed Salah find the net to secure the win.

Jota opened the scoring from close range on the hour mark, finishing off a fine team move. Salah doubled the advantage five minutes later, finding the net for a record ninth time on the opening day of a Premier League season after a one-two with Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Here are the player ratings from the match:

IPSWICH (4-2-3-1)

Christian Walton – 6.5

Walton had a solid game, making a few key saves in the first half. However, he was beaten by Jota’s close-range finish and could do little about Salah’s goal.

Axel Tuanzebe – 5

Tuanzebe struggled against the pace and movement of Liverpool’s front line, particularly Diaz and Robertson on his side.

Luke Woolfenden – 7 (Booked)

Woolfenden was booked early on for a tug on Gravenberch, but stood tall against the challenge of Jota. He made a huge block to deny Mac Allister on the line.

Jacob Greaves – 7

Greaves made a crunching tackle on Szoboszlai just 90 seconds into the match and was solid defensively throughout.

Leif Davis – 7

Davis was excellent in the first half, making several big tackles against Salah. However, he tired in the second half and was given a tough time by the Egyptian.

Massimo Luongo – 6.5

Luongo covered a lot of ground in midfield, but struggled to impact the game going forward.

Sam Morsy – 6

Morsy hustled in midfield, but was outshone by his opponents.

Wes Burns – 6 (Booked)

Burns was unlucky to be booked early on, but gave Robertson a number of worries in the first half. He lacked end product, however.

Conor Chaplin – 5

Chaplin popped up in dangerous areas, but did not do enough to impact Ipswich’s attacks.

Omari Hutchinson – 7 (Booked)

Hutchinson was Ipswich’s best attacker in the first half, constantly getting on the ball. He had a big sight of goal after two minutes, but was thwarted by Quansah.

Liam Delap – 6.5

Delap was playing on the shoulder of his England Under 21 team-mate Quansah in the first half and made some good runs in behind. He wanted a penalty in the second half for a push from Van Dijk, but was denied by the offside flag.

Substitutes:

Ben Johnson (for Burns 57) – 6

Jack Taylor (for Luongo 65) – 6

Marcus Harness (for Chaplin 65) – 6

Ali Al-Hamadi (for Delap 74) – 6

Sammie Szmodics (for Tuanzebe 74) – 6

Unused: Cieran Slicker, Kalvin Phillips, Cameron Burgess, Conor Townsend.

LIVERPOOL (4-2-3-1)

Alisson – 6

Alisson was forced into a couple of simple stops in the first half, denying a Greaves header and then a powerful Hutchinson effort. He gave the ball away cheaply on occasion.

Trent Alexander-Arnold – 7.5

Alexander-Arnold showed off his passing range, playing some lovely balls in behind for the likes of Salah. He had Liverpool’s best sight of goal on the stroke of half-time, but skied a shot over the crossbar.

Jarell Quansah – 6

Quansah made an important block after two minutes to deny Hutchinson and enjoyed his battle against his good friend Delap. He was sadly taken off at half-time and replaced by Konate.

Virgil van Dijk – 6

Van Dijk made some important and commanding headers as usual, reducing the threat posed by Ipswich. He was comfortable on the ball. Ipswich fans wanted a penalty for a shove on Delap, but Liverpool were bailed out by the offside flag.

Andy Robertson – 5

Robertson had a tough first half, being beaten