Liverpool is gearing up for the upcoming Premier League season in fine form.
Roberto Firmino scored twice and 20-year-old Marko Grujic scored a goal in his first minutes as a Red in a 5-0 win over League One side Fleetwood Town at Highbury Stadium.
Grujic got things started by winning a penalty that Danny Ings missed, and the young Serbian midfielder found the back of the net to open the scoring on 18 minutes. Obviously still being preseason, expectations are tempered, but the solid performance for the man on loan at Red Star Belgrade last season left a mark on the observing journalists.
18-year-old Ben Woodburn scored to give Liverpool its second seven minutes into the second half. Firmino scored both his goals in the second half – the second in injury time – and that’s where manager Jurgen Klopp took the most positives.
“I saw a few good things, chances we created and a few good defensive actions, and good individual performances from one or two players. In the first half especially, I was not happy with the team play,” Klopp told the official team website. “Because we could have done better and we should try to do better. In a game like this, if the only situations you have are because of the individual quality of the player then something is wrong. Like we scored the goals in the second half – it was a nice pass, a good run, another nice pass and an easy goal. That’s how football should work. We did better in the second half.”
The win leaves Liverpool perfect through two preseason matches, having blanked Tranmere Rovers 1-0 in their first outing. It’s a long preseason to go for Klopp and company, with friendlies against Wigan and Huddersfield Town before a pair against Chelsea and AC Milan as part of the International Champions Cup in the United States. The Reds open Premier League play against Arsenal on August 14 at the Emirates.
