Diaz offers Man City question
The Benfica supporters who made their feelings clear long before the first whistle must have known what was coming.
The loudest jeers when the Liverpool line-up was announced inside the cavernous Estadio da Luz were reserved for Luis Diaz, a one-time rival with Porto before earning his £50million move to Anfield in January.
Having been used sparingly in the last few games, Diaz was in from the start in this Champions League quarter-final first leg. And from first minute to last, he was targeted by both Benfica players and fans.
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Clobbered by Gilberto early on, Diaz simply picked himself up and got on with it, regularly driving the Benfica right-back into positions he didn’t want to be and on hand to nod an assist for Sadio Mane to score the second.
Beginning on the left flank, Diaz moved to the right for the final half-hour but was in a central position to calmly convert the goal late on that gave Liverpool a winning margin their overall display deserved. The barrage of flagpoles thrown at Diaz by the frustrated Benfica faithful were met with a dismissive smile.
Mohamed Salah, despite again drawing a blank, was far more encouraging during a lively first-half, Mane similarly shone before the break, Roberto Firmino impressed from the bench and Diogo Jota, as ever, could have scored after being introduced.
Diaz, though, may well have done enough to secure a starting role at Manchester City on Sunday. It’s the kind of headache Jurgen Klopp will absolutely love.
Konate’s learning curve
Elite football can be such an unforgiving place. Just ask Ibrahima Konate.
For more than half of this Champions League clash, the Frenchman had overpowered Benfica dangerman Darwin Nunez, setting the tone when knocking the Uruguayan striker out of his stride in the opening moments.
Composed and strong, Konate also found time to saunter upfield and head in Andy Robertson’s inswinging corner from the right for the first goal of his Liverpool career to nudge Klopp’s side in front on 17 minutes.
But it was the Frenchman whose missed clearance four minutes after the interval allowed Nunez to confidently convert at the far post and give Benfica and their supporters hope of a comeback.
Konate, a mere centre-back pup at 22, could easily have been cowed. Instead, he stuck gamely to his task and helped Liverpool stem the home tide and ultimately expose the gulf in class between the teams.
The defender has now started four of the last five Champions League games, compared to just eight in the Premier League all season, perhaps underlining why his ongoing progress is best served in the more familiar environs of European football.
And with each game along the again quietly assured Virgil van Dijk, Konate is revealing himself to be a quick learner.
Trent gotta Trent
Joe Gomez did a pretty good impression in parts against Watford on Saturday.
But there’s only one Trent Alexander-Arnold. And after a brief spell on the sidelines, the right-back has sent a booming signal ahead of the Etihad clash that he remains in some of the best form of his career.
While there was no direct assist on this occasion, the outrageous crossfield diagonal pass that invited Diaz to tee up Mane for the second deserves some kind of statistic all by itself.
To prove it was no fluke, Alexander-Arnold produced an even more ridiculous pass shortly afterwards to send Salah scampering through for a chance the Egyptian will believe he should have converted.
Klopp, though, will be similarly enthused by the 23-year-old’s appetite to defend and willingness to cover, which will be tested to the maximum by City at the weekend.
And on the other flank, Andy Robertson’s assist for the opener moves him on to 14 for the season, closing to within three of his fellow full-back. That personal battle continues to propel Liverpool towards further success.
