Darwin Nunez pipped to highest rating as Liverpool ‘have Caoimhin Kelleher to thank’

Darwin Nunez may have been an impressive match-winner in Liverpool’s 1-0 victory at RB Leipzig, but a hero at the other end of the pitch got top marks.

Arne Slot‘s side were aiming to make it three wins out of three in the Champions League this season, and they did just that.

Nunez’s close-range strike was the difference between the two sides, leaving Liverpool in a great position to reach the knockout stages.

Here we compare our player ratings with those of the Liverpool Echo, GOAL, FotMob and This Is Anfield’s readers.

Caoimhin Kelleher (8.1) got the highest average rating at the Red Bull Arena, as he showed yet again what a perfect understudy to Alisson he is.

Is he Liverpool’s second-best goalkeeper of the Premier League era?

TIA’s James Nalton felt that while the Reds’ defence did well overall, “they have Kelleher to thank for the clean sheet.”

Meanwhile, FotMob pointed out at the Irishman made four saves, as well as completing 83 percent of his passes.

Nunez (8.0) has come in for plenty of criticism for his erratic finishing and lack of link-up play, but he was excellent this time out.

The 25-year-old could barely miss when he turned Mohamed Salah‘s goal-bound header into the net, but he shone in his all-round Game.

Paul Gorst of the Echo said that Nunez “led the line superbly” in the absence of Diogo Jota, adding that he was “always a willing runner.”

Dutch duo Virgil van Dijk (7.6) and Ryan Gravenberch (7.6) also caught the eye, standing out in their respective roles.

Nalton picked out an “effort covering in the defensive line to block a Xavi Simons cross” as Gravenberch’s standout moment, as his near-perfect season continues.

Trent Alexander-Arnold (6.5) got the worst score, and while he didn’t always look fully at the races, he was still perfectly solid.