EPL Player Ratings – Liverpool 1 AFC Bournemouth 0

EPL Player Ratings – Liverpool 1 AFC Bournemouth 0

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AFC Bournemouth are still without any points this season after a contentious Christian Benteke goal gave Liverpool the edge in front of a festive Anfield crowd.

It seemed as though this year’s new offside rules were put on hold as an offside Coutinho seemingly shepherded the ball through to a waiting, onside Benteke for the only goal of the match.

The Cherries looked to be off to a dream start when, in the fifth minute of play, Tommy Elphick managed to wrestle his header into the home side’s net, only to have the goal disallowed for improper use of his hands – opinions seem to remain split.

Still without a single goal in the Premier League, Bournemouth had a lot of positives to draw from the match, such as limiting Liverpool to only two shots on target. The flip side to that the Cherries only managed two shots at the opposition goal. 

Liverpool

Simon Mignolet – 5: On the whole, a decent showing from the Belgian. May have deflected on a couple of occasions when he could have caught the ball and did look vulnerable during the disallowed goal in the fifth minute.

Nathaniel Clyne – 6: When the opportunity arose, he got forward well. Successfully dueled with Gradel.

Martin Skrtel – 6: Struggled a bit in the first half to contain an eager Wilson, but was solid when he needed to be.

Dejan Lovren – 5: Appeared to be struggling a bit early on, but as the game wore on, he had to deal with less and less.

Joe Gomez – 6: Consistent first half and followed up in the second. The 18-year-old is repaying Rodgers’ faith in him.

James Milner – 5: Played a very transparent holding role in a Liverpool side that very rarely held the ball in that part of the midfield for long.

Jordan Henderson – 5: Did very little in the way of influencing play.

Jordon Ibe – 3: On all accounts a poor showing from the young Englishman. Dribble selection was forced and his touches lacked conviction.

Philippe Coutinho – 7: No goals or assists for the young Brazilian, but was observably the puppeteer behind nearly every Liverpool attack. Thrived as always on the counter attack.

Adam Lallana – 7: Looked good with the ball at his feet and managed to link up well with the Liverpool attack.

Christian Benteke – 7: Showed good anticipation to latch onto Henderson’s cross in the 26th minute. Hold-up play was good.

Substitutes

Roberto Firmino – 4: Came on late in the second half and did very little to influence play.

Emre Can – 5: Looked more imposing than Henderson in the holding role, though had some questionable touches when on the ball.

Alberto Moreno – 5: Looked the fresher legs after being subbed on. Had good energy and looked to tire himself before the final whistle.

 

 

Bournemouth

Artur Boruc – 6: Despite the perceived disparity in the teams, Boruc had very little to do. Made himself big in goal. Could not do anything about the Benteke strike.

Simon Francis – 5: Had a forgettable day, not for anything negative, but just for very few positives. Dealt well enough with a misfiring Ibe.

Tommy Elphick – 6: Looked to be up to the physical standard of the game. Had a goal disallowed in the fifth minute. Emerging as one of the league’s better aerial players.

Steve Cook – 6: Had a relatively strong game, only blotch against his name was a sloppy tackle on a surging Moreno, late on.

Charlie Daniels – 7: Showed a ranged passing game. Defensively could not be faulted, covered his centre-backs well. 

Matt Ritchie – 6: Struggled to receive the ball in advanced positions, spent most of the first half looking like an advanced wing-back. Had some better touches in the second half, even getting a couple of shots away.

Eunan O’Kane – 5: Initially offered a good enthusiasm in the heart of the Bournemouth midfield. However, impact on the play faded as the game went on.

Andrew Surman – 5: Playing with an air of unpredictability, his sights were a bit off in this game. Made a good block against Coutinho in the 71st minute.

Max Gradel – 6: Dribbled into trouble on a couple of occasions, but took on a good workload and got back well.

Joshua King – 4: Quiet first half and very rarely linked up with Wilson in attack.

Callum Wilson – 5: Looked a much more proactive striker than the one that faced Aston Villa a week ago. However a lack of opportunity made it a quiet day at the office.

Substitutes

Lee Tomlin – 3: By no means an impressive showing from the Englishman, whose touches looked lacklustre. 

Adam Smith – 3: Did very little after coming on for Gradel, did not appear up to Premier League standard.

Dan Gosling – N/A: Was only on the field for a handful of minutes.

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