Naby Keïta assumed centre stage as Liverpool again emphasised why it would take a particularly brave pundit to predict any flattening of their upward trajectory next season.
With the Guinean dominating midfield, Jürgen Klopp’s champions recovered from a slow start to ensure Steve Bruce’s bold pre-match talk of Newcastle “moving onwards and upwards” was made to look a tad optimistic. Newcastle’s distinguished guests finished the campaign on 99 points, the highest tally in Liverpool’s history.
“Ninety-nine points is exceptional,” Klopp said. “We had to be nearly perfect. This group of players is exceptional and will be remembered for ever but we still have a couple more chapters to write for this team.”
The German says he does not dispense first-team appearances “like sweets” but here he rested his first-choice front three, leaving Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mané warming the bench. In all, Liverpool’s manager made five changes from the side that beat Chelsea 5-3 last week, offering rare chances to Neco Williams at right-back and Takumi Minamino in attack.
Bruce’s selection was informed purely by necessity. Injuries dictated he fielded two full-backs, Javier Manquillo and Danny Rose, in the most ersatz of three-man defences. No matter; within 24 seconds Dwight Gayle had scored Newcastle’s fastest goal of the season.
When the otherwise outstanding Virgil van Dijk fouled Allan Saint-Maximin, Jonjo Shelvey played a quick free-kick to Gayle’s feet and, clean through, the striker lifted his shot over the advancing Alisson. A hiatus ensued as a VAR check confirmed it was onside but while that delay proved mildly irritating, this was a match lacking any real urgency.
Liverpool had long since won the title and Bruce’s side were happy enough to settle for 13th. Right now, the only thing that really matters to anyone connected with Newcastle is when the Premier League will decide whether to approve the long-running, £300m Saudi Arabian-led takeover attempt. Time will tell whether the Saudis’ engagement of the former chancellor Philip Hammond as an adviser will prove decisive.
Liverpool’s endeavours to force an equaliser involved plenty of Keïta-inspired possession but Klopp’s players rarely tested Martin Dubravka until he excelled in turning Minamino’s dipping 25-yard shot round a post.
It signalled a significant turn in the tide. The Slovakia goalkeeper had no answer to Van Dijk’s looping 38th-minute header after the central defender met Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s cross with Rose wrong-footed.
It was Divock Origi’s turn to confound the Newcastle defence in the 59th minute, the forward meeting Andrew Robertson’s ball before stepping inside Manquillo and directing a beautifully weighted, elegantly curving shot beyond Dubravka’s reach. The last thing Bruce needed at that point was the sight of Klopp’s preferred attacking trident standing stripped in the technical area but, sure enough, on trotted Salah, Mané and Firmino. Salah very quickly made his presence felt by crashing a shot against a post.
It made for quite a debut for Kelland Watts. The Newcastle academy graduate, who spent the early part of the season on loan at Stevenage was hurled into the deep end after replacing Rose. Mané underlined the quality of Watts’ new opposition by cutting inside and curling a gorgeous shot well out of Dubravka’s despairing reach. “That goal sums up our season,” said Klopp. “Difficult but not impossible, so give it a go.”
Afterwards Bruce took a very rare call from the current owner, Mike Ashley. “He just wanted to say a thank you to everyone for all the hard work this season,” he said. “There’s no update on the takeover. It’s still with the Premier League but it’s now vitally important we get a decision one way or the other. Surely 16 weeks has been long enough.”
