Yet again, we have to focus on bad Liverpool performances after the 4-2 defeat to Aston Villa, with Cody Gakpo a “passenger” once more.
The Reds were soundly beaten at Villa Park on Friday night, meaning Champions League qualification is still on the line.
Here we compare our player ratings with those of the Liverpool Echo, GOAL and the TIA readers.
Gakpo (3.38) is in horrible form and was Liverpool’s poorest performer against Villa.
Other than having a goal chalked off for offside, he did next to nothing, with GOAL’s Krishan David calling him a “passenger up top.”
Ian Doyle of the Echo was slightly kinder, saying he didn’t get much quality service, but This Is Anfield‘s readers gave him a 1.5 rating!
BIRMINGHAM, ENGLAND - Friday, May 15, 2026: Liverpool's Alexis Mac Allister reacts to conceding the first goal during the FA Premier League match between Aston Villa FC and Liverpool FC at Villa Park. (Photo by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)
Alexis Mac Allister (3.50) threw in another ineffective display – some embarrassing histrionics summed up his evening.
TIA’s Danny Gallagher described the Argentine as “unrecognisable these days,” with Ryan Gravenberch (3.53) also in the bottom three and only just faring better than his midfield colleague.
On the plus side, Rio Ngumoha (6.68) again did his best, easily getting the top score for Liverpool and being hailed as the Reds’ “brightest attacking spark” by Davis.
What the stats say: Van Dijk stands tallest for Liverpool
According to FotMob, Virgil van Dijk (8.0) was Liverpool’s best player, no doubt because he scored twice.
The Reds skipper made the most clearances for the visitors (5), and the joint-most from either side, sharing the tally with Ezri Konsa.
Dominik Szoboszlai may have been Liverpool’s standout figure this season, but he won just one out of seven ground duels (14%) at Villa.
Meanwhile, Gakpo had only four touches in the opposition penalty area.