Konate coming of age
Amid the cut and thrust of a tense encounter, there were two moments that indicated Ibrahima Konate was coming to terms with the Premier League.
And each underlined why Liverpool bet big on the French centre-back this summer.
Konate had been edging an absorbing battle with Newcastle United dangerman Allan Saint-Maximin when the striker embarked on another thrusting run into the Liverpool half.
It ended with Saint-Maximin being bounced to the turf by the defender in fair, emphatic and no-nonsense fashion, much to the delight of the Anfield crowd.
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If that was a demonstration of Konate’s undoubted physical might, his growing composure and confidence in possession was clear with a neat piece of control near the touchline that again earned a warm ovation.
The 22-year-old has understandably been finding his feet since his £36million arrival from RB Leipzig, the inconsistency evident with a fine performance at Old Trafford followed by an iffy one against Brighton and Hove Albion.
But with Virgil van Dijk absent, the timing was ideal here for Konate to lay down a significant marker of his potential alongside the ever-steady Joel Matip.
There will be more to come from Konate. After the solid showing at the San Siro, he is now moving in the right direction.
Rate the Liverpool players for their performance in the win over Newcastle United:
Salah gotta Salah
Mohamed Salah has that many records he has probably acquired one for possessing the most at any one time by a Liverpool player.
And with Newcastle in town, there was only ever going to be more on offer for the Egyptian.
Salah became the first Reds player to net in five consecutive home games against the Magpies, and now has nine in seven games against an Eddie Howe side.
He has also scored or assisted in his last 15 Premier League games, matching the record held by Leicester City’s Jamie Vardy, while his 22nd goal of the season means only Roger Hunt with 23 in 1961/62 has scored more for Liverpool before Christmas.
And Salah has moved on to 37 goals for Liverpool in 2021, equalling his best return in a calendar year. Only Ian Rush has ever achieved a higher tally for the Reds.
Eyebrows, though, were raised when Salah was substituted with 16 minutes remaining, the forward visibly frustrated as he traipsed past Jurgen Klopp to the bench. Such is his lust for goals.
This was also a landmark evening for Klopp, who notched his 150th league win as Liverpool manager, reaching the number 12 matches fewer than any other Reds boss.
And the triumph made the Reds the first team in English history to register 2,000 victories in the top flight.
Coronavirus concern once more
It wasn’t quite as unsettling as the feeling when Atletico Madrid came to town back in March 2020.
But there was no disputing the sense of unease among those heading to Anfield as the pre-match whispers were confirmed with three Liverpool players – Virgil van Dijk, Fabinho and Curtis Jones – suspected positive for coronavirus.
With the rapid spread of the Omicron variant having already claimed a number of fixtures – including half the coming weekend’s Premier League programme – there was debate over why this visit of Newcastle was even taking place.
Liverpool determined that, with three players affected, it didn’t constitute an outbreak among the first-team squad and coaching staff with everyone else retesting negative before the match.
It is, though, inevitable the Reds’ schedule will at some point be affected, possibly even as early as Sunday’s trip to Tottenham Hotspur.
Football, like society, will get through the disruption with health and safety very much first and foremost.
But the next few weeks are going to be bumpy for everyone until more is known about the new, clearly far more transmissible variant.
And quite when we will again be able to reconvene at Anfield remains to be seen. Fingers crossed it won't be too long.
