Player ratings: Liverpool vs Bournemouth

Tight contest: Bournemouth pushed Liverpool all the way

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17 August 2015

Standard Sport assesses the indivdual performances in Liverpool's 1-0 win over Bournemouth.

Mignolet: The goalkeeper didn’t have much to do in the first half, but did well when called into action later on. 6

Clyne: Defended well while being heavily involved in Liverpool’s attack down the right flank and caused Gradel problems as the game went on. 7

Lovren: Didn’t show enough strength to stop Elphick from heading in the opener, but was saved when the goal was ruled out. But he defended well otherwise although he wasn’t called into action much later. 6

Skrtel: Was commanding in defence and also helped provide long-range crosses to help in attacks but could have given away a penalty in the second half. 6

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Gomez: Did well on his home debut and looked assured at left-back although he did get a yellow card. 7

Henderson: Set up Benteke’s goal with his deep cross, and also worked hard to clear danger in the midfield areas. 7

Milner: His Premier League experience showed as he remained calm while dealing with loose balls while linking up well with Coutinho and those around him. 6

Coutinho: Was Liverpool’s most creative force, finding small pockets of space and using it to make key passes – both long and short – to his teammates. 7

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en"><a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AFCB?src=hash" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-2871946-https://twitter.com/hashtag/AFCB?src=hash" data-vars-event-id="c23">#AFCB</a> are going toe-to-toe with <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LFC?src=hash" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-2871946-https://twitter.com/hashtag/LFC?src=hash" data-vars-event-id="c23">#LFC</a> in the 2nd half, follow it LIVE <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="http://t.co/bRM6FvQGPs" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-2871946-http://t.co/bRM6FvQGPs" data-vars-event-id="c23">http://t.co/bRM6FvQGPs</a> <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="http://t.co/RMMgT3s5GV" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-2871946-http://t.co/RMMgT3s5GV" data-vars-event-id="c23">pic.twitter.com/RMMgT3s5GV</a> — Standard Sport (@standardsport) <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/standardsport/status/633369754833698816" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-2871946-https://twitter.com/standardsport/status/633369754833698816" data-vars-event-id="c23">August 17, 2015</a>

Lallana: Displayed a good work rate but couldn’t impact the game and assert his dominance in midfield. 5

Ibe: Demonstrated good pace down the left flank and was a real threat for the home side when they went forwards. 6

Benteke: Scored his first goal for Liverpool and provided a strong presence up front, hitting the bar late on. 8

Can: Substituted on to provide more protection in front of the back four and despite being sloppy at times, was a strong presence. 5

Firmino: Showed off his pace and fancy footwork after coming on as a substitute but couldn’t impact the game. 5

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">HT at Anfield, Benteke's controversial goal has given <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LFC?src=hash" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-2871946-https://twitter.com/hashtag/LFC?src=hash" data-vars-event-id="c23">#LFC</a> the lead against <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AFCB?src=hash" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-2871946-https://twitter.com/hashtag/AFCB?src=hash" data-vars-event-id="c23">#AFCB</a> <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="http://t.co/bRM6FvQGPs" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-2871946-http://t.co/bRM6FvQGPs" data-vars-event-id="c23">http://t.co/bRM6FvQGPs</a> <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="http://t.co/U5kVeJVyV8" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-2871946-http://t.co/U5kVeJVyV8" data-vars-event-id="c23">pic.twitter.com/U5kVeJVyV8</a> — Standard Sport (@standardsport) <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/standardsport/status/633365982979969024" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-2871946-https://twitter.com/standardsport/status/633365982979969024" data-vars-event-id="c23">August 17, 2015</a>

Boruc: Could not keep Benteke’s strike out, arguably because he was distracted by Coutinho, but wasn’t tested too much apart from that one moment. 5

Francis: Made some good clearances and dealt with Liverpool’s threat down the right flank well. 6

Elphick: Out-jumped Lovren to score what could have been the opener and linked up well with Cook. 6

Cook: Wasn’t tested as much and also proved dangerous in set pieces. 6

Daniels: Dealt with balls down the left flank well but Clyne increasingly caused him problems as the game went on. However, he did well against Liverpool. 7

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Ritchie: Took several shots at goal and could have restored parity. Grew into the game as the second half wore on. 6

O'Kane: Was shown a yellow card for his foul on Coutinho as Brazilian started running the show from midfield but protected the defence well enough. 6

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Surman: Made some key blocks in midfield but Coutinho’s pace caused him issues at times. Helped go on the attack when Bournemouth ventured forwards. 6

Gradel: Looked good early on but struggled with his defensive duties as Clyne caused him issues. 5

King: Was lively early on and helped with his defensive duties too but was taken off as he failed to partner well with Wilson. 5

Wilson: Initially caused the home side problems with his pace, but increasingly became ineffective as he dropped back into midfield. 5

Tomlin: Made his Premier League and Bournemouth debut and got involved in some late attacks by Bournemouth but couldn’t be the difference and eventually got booked. 5

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