Report: Liverpool 5 Swansea 0

Liverpool put five past Swansea at Anfield on Boxing Day and regained 4th place in the league from Spurs in the process. It was an emphatic win for the Reds but it is important to remember that Swansea were not exactly the strongest of opposition. The Welsh side are still languishing at the bottom of the league after this fixture and look in serious trouble. 

Trent Alexander Arnold
Image via skysports.com
Nevertheless, Liverpool did score five without conceding, a feat to be applauded as we head into the final game of 2018 against Leicester. Captain Philippe Coutinho opened up the scoring with a typical long-range effort sweetly slotted into the top corner. 

I was chatting on Twitter prior to kick-off about Coutinho, I hope to god that we keep hold of him but I can't shake the feeling that he will be off in January. Whatever happens, you cannot deny that he still puts his all into every game for the club.

The Reds had plenty of further chances in the first half and really should have extended their lead but they would not find the back of the net again until the second half. At this stage, Swansea were holding decent amounts of possession and had a solid chance of their own to equalise, the second half though would prove a step too far for the visitors and things began to crumble.

Roberto Firmino found Liverpool's second just seven minutes into the final 45. It was the following goal though that grabbed my attention, youngster Trent Alexander-Arnold had found himself high up the pitch, a botched clearance brought the ball into his path and a stinging effort saw his shot smash off the bar and into the back of the net. His celebration said it all, he was elated. This man for sure is set to be a real Kop hero.

Trent double A and Andy Robertson had a fantastic game, while questions still remain over the defence as a whole, these two are superb going forward and helping to create attacks. It's superb to watch.

The fourth goal was massively down to that man Mo Salah but being the unselfish person that he is, he squared to team-mate Firmino who scored his second of the night with ease. Salah needs real praise here because on at least three or four occasions during this match alone he'd been left in the lurch when really the likes of Lallana or Can or even Firmino should have passed. When the shoe is on the other foot, the Egyptian is always looking for that pass, unselfish yet still on 15 goals, phenomenal.

The fifth and final goal of the night came from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. Oxlade was always going to have questions asked about his performance, mainly due to his price tag but I feel on the whole he's doing well. As Klopp recently highlighted, if he could bring more goals into his game then it would be perfect, he was helped on the way to that target by scoring against The Swans. 

Next up for the Reds is Leicester at Anfield, the Foxes have pulled out some good results of late but also look vulnerable this season. On the back of such a strong win, let's hope Klopp's side can pick up another three points ready for the New Year.