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Liverpool Echo

Sport

Ian Doyle

Luis Diaz injury problem becomes clear as two Liverpool players leave squad behind

Liverpool Luis Diaz Jurgen Klopp Diogo Jota Jorg Schmadtke the Champions League

Whichever way you choose to dress it up, the truth is unavoidable: Liverpool have had a very, very disappointing season.

Sure, there is the slight consolation of fifth place and Europa League qualification which, at one point earlier this year, appeared beyond the Reds.

But that Jurgen Klopp's side failed to finish in the top four for the first time in seven years while meekly surrendering their holds on the FA Cup and League before embarrassingly slipping out of the Champions League at the last 16 stage underlines what an underwhelming campaign it has been.

The reasons are well documented. And the tale of the term can be seen in the performances of the players, with the ECHO having rated Liverpool's squad throughout the 52 games they have played in all competitions this season, marking them out of 10 for every appearance in which they played for at least 15 minutes.

Here, then, we assess the campaign of each player who made 20 scoring appearances, using their average ratings as a guide. They don't make for particularly great reading.

The men who impressed

There is one player who, by some distance, has shone for Liverpool amid all the gloom. Alisson Becker (6.91) performed with consistency throughout the campaign and only twice registered a rating lower than six during his 47 scoring appearances.

Mohamed Salah (6.82) is the only other Reds man to run the goalkeeper close, reflecting a campaign that, while not his best, still saw him score 30 goals and contribute 16 assists, racking up a host of club records along the way.

Best of the rest

Ibrahima Konate (6.58) and Virgil van Dijk (6.54) are firmly ensconced as the first-choice centre-back pairing, with the former reasonably solid throughout and the latter finding a rich vein of form over the closing weeks.

The high placing of Diogo Jota (6.52) underlines what Liverpool missed in attack through the Portuguese being absent twice through injury, while Andy Robertson (6.48) was steady on the left side of defence.

Harvey Elliott (6.45) deserves credit for having performed consistently during the darkest days, and Cody Gakpo (6.44) overcame a slow start to his Anfield career to end the campaign as the most likely to lead the forward line into the new season.

James Milner (6.42) may have been restricted to cameo appearances from the bench since the New Year, but he largely got the job done.

Below their best

Darwin Nunez (6.38), another big-money forward signing, made decent contributions before Christmas but afterwards only registered one outing higher than 7, when scoring twice in the 7-0 win over Manchester United.

Trent Alexander-Arnold (6.37) had periods of real struggle but the switch to the inverted right-back role in the last few months has bumped up his average rating considerably. Roberto Firmino (6.35) and Thiago Alcantara (6.33) both had occasional decent spells of form but were hampered by niggling injuries.

Meanwhile, Fabinho (6.13) was on course for a particularly dismal campaign - his substitute appearances adding little - until an upturn in form helped Liverpool end with an 11-match unbeaten run.

Must do better

Joe Gomez (6.08) signed a new contract last summer and was settling in as a regular starter until a shocking outing in the Champions League at Napoli dented confidence. There was a revival of sorts in the New Year until another poor outing in the dire defeat at Wolves.

Joel Matip (6.05) was another centre-back who suffered that afternoon, with his form after Christmas deeply disappointing. Jordan Henderson (6.00) rarely appeared 100% this season and, some notable displays aside, wasn't able to affect games as much as in recent years, caught up in the midfield malaise.

And Kostas Tsimikas (5.95) simply couldn't replicate his fine showings of last term when deputising at left-back.

On the fringes

There were a number of players who didn't feature enough to be included in the overall standings. Luis Diaz (6.84) just missed the cut with 19 outings and, like Jota, demonstrated what Liverpool were without for so long.

Teenage midfielder Stefan Bajcetic (6.77) was the breakthrough star before his season was ended by injury, while Curtis Jones (6.33) was impressive in the closing weeks after a frustrating campaign on the sidelines.

Fabio Carvalho (6.15) barely had a look-in after Christmas, while Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (6.00) had a brief flurry of activity over the New Year. However, the performances of Naby Keita (5.45) perhaps highlight why he left having not played since February.

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