IPSWICH 0-2 LIVERPOOL: Two quickfire strikes from Alexander Isak was enough to see the Reds secure their first Premier League win of the season on Friday evening
Alexander Isak
Alexander Isak netted twice against Ipswich on Friday evening(Image: Getty Images)
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Liverpool finally secured their first win of the Premier League season by beating newly-promoted Ipswich at Portman Road.
Liverpool took control early on through Alexander Isak as he scored twice in the opening ten minutes. The Reds thought they were set to be handed a penalty after Dominik Szoboszlai was fouled midway through the second-half but VAR correctly intervened.
But the damage was already done in the first half by Isak, as Liverpool sealed their first success of the campaign, while it's now back-to-back defeats for Ipswich.
Here are all of the talking points from Portman Road:
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Isak back to his best
Barely six minutes into the game and Liverpool were ahead through Isak. A lot of the praise for the goal has to go to Cody Gakpo, who showed great feet in the centre of the park and picked out the Swedish forward with an inch-perfect ball.
He controlled and then hammered past Kjell Scherpen in the Ipswich goal, who may have thought he could have done better. But Isak will not care too much, having netted his second goal of the season.
Two became three barely three minutes later as he latched onto another brilliant pass by Gakpo, composed himself and slotted home. He's now matched his Premier League goal record from the entirety of last season and it would be foolish to bet against him beating that.
He actually thought he had done after getting on the end of a Florian Wirtz cross but had drifted offside.
Alexander Isak and Cody Gakpo
Alexander Isak and Cody Gakpo linked up well at Ipswich(Image: Getty Images)
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Gakpo call spot on
If things had panned out differently, Liverpool might not have had Cody Gakpo's services to call upon for this game. He appeared set for a move to Manchester City over the closing days of the window.
For one reason or another, the move did not come to fruition. Liverpool will be hugely thankful that it didn't. Gakpo's passes for Isak were brilliant - the first being an inch-perfect pass, the second being a brilliant, outside of the boot effort.
Like Isak, Gakpo has really impressed over the opening weeks of the campaign and that was certainly the same at Portman Road.
Penalty decision explained
Liverpool thought they were going to be given a golden opportunity to extend their lead even further as Dominik Szoboszlai was taken down by Leif Davies.
The referee did not give the decision initially but looked as though he would change his mind upon review. But the hosts still had a reprieve, with the Liverpool midfielder offside in the build-up, rendering the controversy irrelevant in any case.
It might not have been the call that Liverpool wanted, but it was the correct one.
Dominik Szoboszlai
Dominik Szoboszlai thought he had won a penalty against Ipswich(Image: Getty Images)
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Barcola gets Premier League introduction
While Liverpool fans will have been keen to see their side win, another key moment that they were looking forward to was Bradley Barcola's debut. The Frenchman was named on the bench following his £123m move from PSG.
But he came on in the second period to make his bow. In honesty, he was on the periphery of the game but there were a few moments where he showed his electric pace in front of the away fans so they will certainly be keen to see that a lot more throughout his time on Merseyside.
First win, first clean sheet
Liverpool's defensive frailties have been well discussed this season. And they were on show once again at Portman Road. The hosts managed to get through on a few occasions, with it taking either an important intervention from Jeremy Jacquet or a save from Alisson to keep them out.
Regardless, Liverpool finally have their first win and first clean sheet of the campaign and that will be a big relief to Andoni Iraola.
When it comes to Ipswich, their season will of course not be defined against games against Liverpool - or indeed last week's trip to Old Trafford - so they won't be too worried at all.
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