Alisson Save: Heroics from the keeper takes Liverpool into the knockouts

Alisson’s incredible save of the year in the 92nd minute keeps Liverpool in the Champions League

Alisson Becker steered Liverpool into the knock out rounds of the Champions League with a heroic save at the end to deny Napoli to go further in this competition. The Reds were in danger of falling apart in the dying seconds of the game but the Brazilian’s quick reflexes ensured that the Naples striker Arkadiusz Milik could not find the back of the net from close range.

Jurgen Klopp’s men opened their scoring through their talisman Mohamed Salah in the 34th minute, and it was ample to secure all three points, ending up second in the table and secure a spot in the last 16. Following a difficult start to the season, the Egyptian has made 13 goal contribution in 11 games, scoring 9 and finding him teammates on four different occasions.

The Liverpool Skipper Jordan Henderson who has been often criticised for his substandard performances, put in a stellar show in the second half to win the midfield battle. The likes of Georginio Wijnaldum and James Milner looked fairly good to nullify the opposition’s midfield which consisted of Allan, Fabian Ruiz, and Marek Hamsik.

It was the visitors who dominated during the early part of the game. The away side captain Marek Hamsik had a fantastic chance to take the lead when he hit one over the frame of the goal in the 7th minute of the game.

After an uneasy start, Liverpool started to grow into the game slowly. Fourteen minutes later, Sadio Mane scored a tap-in from an inch-perfect ball from Trent Alexander Arnold. It was rightly adjudged as off-side. It looked just a matter of time until the Reds open the deadlock in the first half.

Mohamed Salah showed great strength to dribble past Marco Rui and Kalidou Koulibaly to calmly slot it past the Napoli goalkeeper David Ospina. Five minutes into the second half, he had an excellent chance to double the lead, but he failed to hit the target.

The Colombian shot-stopper was once again forced to react quickly from a shot from Sadio Mane. The Liverpool forward should have found the back of the net, but instead, he hit it straight into the hands of Ospina. Even though his blatant miss in the 87th minute could have counted for nothing, it was mounting pressure on the hosts to see out the game.

The visitors had an excellent opportunity to level the score, but Jose Callejon failed to hit the target from three yards. Just when Milik looked to have found a chance, Alisson Becker saved Liverpool’s day from misery.

Jurgen Klopp, who dodged a bullet by triggering the release clause of 72 million Euros in the summer transfer window could not be happier with the performance of Alisson Becker,

“If I knew Alisson was this good – I would have paid double. Wow, what a game. I am not sure a manager could be prouder of a team than I am.” he said.

Since the start of the season, the Brazilian shot-stopper has bailed Liverpool out on numerous occasions. Gary Neville pinpointed the importance of Alisson to this current Liverpool side,

“Alisson has saved Liverpool on numerous occasions this season; earned them big points. Great goalkeepers win you point after point after point after point. You don’t always notice it.

“So is Van Dijk the biggest impact on that team? No he’s not. Look at the stats: 86 per cent save ratio – the highest in the league. Last season it was 64 per cent (ranked 19th).

“Yes, the two young lads alongside Van Dijk, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Joe Gomez are fantastic – and I love watching them play. But for me it’s the goalkeeper [Alisson] who has made all the difference and makes them genuine contenders.” added the former Manchester United defender.