Barry Lewtas' Liverpool U23s side gained ground on both Manchester United and Chelsea in Premier League 2 this afternoon as they recorded a 2-1 victory over Southampton.
The young Reds also moved ahead of Everton in the table as a result of the win, in a game which saw all three goals netted in the first half.
Jakub Ojrzynski, Owen Beck, Conor Bradley, Billy Koumetio, Tyler Morton, Jake Cain and Ben Woodburn all dropped out of the side, having been involved in Saturday's intra-squad friendly match in Kirkby with the first team.
And the injured Layton Stewart was also missing having picked up a serious ACL injury that could keep him out for months.
Leighton Clarkson was also missing, despite his recent injury issue, having also been preferred in Kirkby rather than in this one, meaning Dominic Corness and Max Woltman both made their U23s debuts - the latter off the bench.
Joe Hardy, making his first start of the campaign after an injury-disrupted few months, put Liverpool in front inside five minutes, with Southampton levelling through Luke Pearce 10 minutes later.
Hardy then scored what proved to be the winner - his third goal of the 2020/21 season so far - seven minutes before the interval with an assist from Fidel O'Rourke.
Southampton made changes in the second half in an attempt to turn the game around with Kameron Ledwidge and David Agbontohoma both entering the field.
But neither change could force an equaliser with Liverpool holding on for the win.
The three points mean that Lewtas' Liverpool side are seventh in the league standings with eight wins, three draws and seven defeats so far this season.
They are 14 points behind league leaders Manchester City, but win their game in hand, and they could move ahead of Manchester United, Chelsea and Derby County into fourth spot.
Liverpool U23s play Brighton at home next on Sunday, April 4 before travelling to Manchester City later the same week.
