Garth Crooks has recognised Liverpool's FA Cup final heroics at Wembley by naming two of Jurgen Klopp's key men in his Match of the Day team of the week.
The Reds lifted their second major honour of the season on Saturday when Kostas Tsimikas scored the decisive penalty in a sudden death shoot-out after 90 minutes and extra time had finished 0-0. But it was the two spot-kick saves of goalkeeper Alisson who paved the way for victory, ensuring he was the BBC pundit's pick in-between the sticks.
Crooks wrote: "There was yet another Alisson one-on-one save from Danny Ings and an excellent stop from the same player in midweek against Aston Villa to keep Liverpool's title hunt alive. The Brazilian goalkeeper then produced another masterclass and another clean sheet against Chelsea in the FA Cup final. Alisson has had the most amazing season, and short of a catastrophe in the Champions League final he will almost certainly be my goalkeeper of the season."
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Crooks also pointed out that Liverpool's Brazilian glovesman has kept 27 clean sheets in all competitions this season, more than any other goalkeeper in Europe's top five leagues. Also making the first XI, at the other end of the pitch was Luis Diaz, who also picked up Man of the Match in the Wembley Cup final, having had more shots in the match (six) than any other player.
On Diaz, Crooks said: "What a find this player is. He was good when he played for Porto but I think he is really going to be a star at Liverpool. On another occasion he could have had a couple of goals but his tireless running both on and off the ball was a threat to Chelsea in the FA Cup final. The only reason Jurgen Klopp brought the Colombia winger off after 98 minutes was because of fatigue. The player was spent and yet he still didn't want to come off the Wembley pitch."
Liverpool's FA Cup win was the second time the Reds have beaten Chelsea in a major cup-final on penalties this season, with both matches ending 0-0 after extra time. It is something Crooks would like to see changed, with the suggestion of a return to traditional cup final replays.
He said: "The FA Cup final was predictably tight. Two top teams dependant on someone providing a moment of magic or making a fatal mistake. As far as finals go Liverpool against Chelsea was a very competitive game, but in truth it was a rerun of Liverpool's 11-10 penalty shootout victory in February's Carabao Cup final. The reality is more and more finals are going to finish like this. The question is however, should games of such magnitude be settled by a penalty shootout? I think not. The drama of these events is unmistakable, but to have domestic cup finals settled on which team misses the least number of spot-kicks at the end of a gruelling tie is hardly the most dignified of endings.
"The FA Cup is the oldest domestic knockout competition - a replay for the final should be accommodated within the calendar. The Chelsea v Leeds replay in 1970 was a classic, and so too was Tottenham Hotspur v Manchester City in 1981. The FA Cup is like no other tournament in the world and should be treated as such."
