Unai Emery would have been pleased with what he saw from his side in the opening stages, as although we came under pressure at times, we were also effective in playing through Liverpool’s press and exploiting space to create openings.
That was evident when Morgan Rogers struck the post early on, but having failed to show more clinical play in the final third, we were eventually made to rue those missed opportunities.
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A dreadful mistake from Emiliano Martinez gifted Mohamed Salah a sight of goal just before the half-time break, and the Liverpool talisman made no mistake as he broke the deadlock and punished the error.
Arne Slot’s side went on to dominate in the second half and doubled their lead through a deflected Ryan Gravenberch strike, and despite Villa’s efforts to push on and try to get back into the game, it ultimately proved to be fruitless as we left Merseyside empty-handed after a disappointing and frustrating outing.
### Aston Villa player ratings vs Liverpool:
**Emiliano Martinez, 4 –** Made a few key saves to deny Liverpool, but all that good work was undone with his woeful pass that led to the opening goal. In tough games on the road with such small margin for error, we simply can’t afford to gift the opposition goals like that.
**Matty Cash, 6 –** Defended resiliently throughout and pushed forward when possible to give us an attacking outlet down the right side. Had his hands full though and wasn’t as effective defensively in this one.
**Ezri Konsa, 6.5 –** Made a brilliant block to keep it 1-0 and showed his class with his reading of the game and positional intelligence on countless occasions. Was sloppy with his passing in the second half as we risked going 3-0 down, but another top performance overall.
**Pau Torres, 5 –** Not his finest outing. Lacked his usual composure and accuracy in possession and his long balls forward often led to Liverpool coming straight back at us on the attack.
**Lucas Digne, 4.5 –** Really struggled in this one. Looked to be aggressive in his defending as he pressed Salah, but got beaten on a number of occasions throughout the game as the Liverpool winger caused him all sorts of problems.
**Amadou Onana, 6 –** Physical and tenacious presence in midfield, but couldn’t give us the control and foothold that we needed in a difficult game like this.
**Boubacar Kamara, 6 –** Similar story to Onana, as they showed their qualities at times but it wasn’t enough to impose ourselves on Liverpool. As we searched for a way back into the game we became more open and exposed, but he did produce a delightful bit of skill in the latter stages when nutmegging Florian Wirtz in our own box.
**Evann Guessand, 4.5 –** The initial phase of his play in possession is positive as he drives forward and looks positive and direct. However, it’s the phase that follows that which is the problem, as he often loses possession cheaply by either running into trouble or making the wrong decision. Has to be better in the final third.
**John McGinn, 5 –** A quiet night for the Villa skipper. Whether that was because of his position out on the left or just a display that lacked his usual energy and tenacity, he couldn’t influence the game in the way he’s capable of doing and that was a big issue for us.
**Morgan Rogers, 6 –** Was the key man in the first half, as he was able to find that space between the lines to turn and run at Liverpool’s defence to create openings for us. Unfortunately, he couldn’t match that with a finish to find a breakthrough, and as Villa began to struggle as the game went on, particularly after we conceded, his impact dissipated.
**Ollie Watkins, 4.5 –** Really struggling at the minute as he’s not looking like scoring at all. Showed good movement and touch at times to link things together, but we look blunt up top and he needs to start scoring goals.
### Substitutes
**Ross Barkley, 6 –** Bright and positive in possession as he drove forward to try and find a way through. Couldn’t produce an end product, but a good contribution in a more advanced role.
**Donyell Malen, 6 –** Similarly to Barkley, he was direct and eager to make something happen after coming on. Villa struggled for possession in the second half, but Malen did offer a different dynamic and threat in a positive effort.
**Ian Maatsen, N/A**
**Tyrone Mings, N/A**