The Brazilian Reds shooter didn’t have much to do on a cold Newcastle night, but he was there when needed to help collect a point
James Milner praised Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson’s ‘high-end’ qualities, with the Brazilian there when needed during a frosty night in Newcastle to help Jurgen Klopp’s side collect another point.
The Reds were rarely tested at St James’ Park, with visitors controlling the proceedings for the most part, but the end product turned out to be in short supply on Tyneside.
Liverpool squandered the chances that presented themselves, making sure Newcastle remained in the game throughout the game.
Steve Bruce’s team were on the verge of snatching the booty in the dying moments, but Alisson was turned on enough to overcome any frostbite that set in and produce a sprawling save to turn Ciaran Clark down.
Such heroes are expected from the South American commander, Milner telling the Reds official site Most Reliable # 1s: “We’ve limited most of the game to them, but Ali is top notch – everyone knows that.
“Especially on a night like tonight, it’s going to be pretty cold for him, I can imagine, standing in the back with not too much to do and then having to stop like that towards the end.” It shows how good he is and how great a player he is for us.
Liverpool had hoped to return home from the northeast with more than a share of the loot to show for their efforts, but the defending champions remain atop the Premier League table – three points ahead of Manchester United – and Milner expects to kick them.
He added on a title run that has already delivered a number of twists and turns: “I think that’s a good point, but it seems like this is when no one wants to take it by the neck.
“We have lost points, everyone seems to be losing points. United had a good race and they are probably the only team to have a race.
“It’s important to start now and try to get some three points. But the world is in a very strange place right now and it’s the same in football. Everyone’s life is turned upside down, it’s mentally hard on everyone and it’s the same in football. Hopefully we can get through it on the other side and it’s the same with football – we just have to keep doing it.
“It’s different, it’s different times and that moment where you maybe need the crowd to give you that lift and get it across the line. It could have happened another day. But that’s where we are and we have to keep working hard.
“As you can see, we gave absolutely everything. The boys are doing well. The number of minutes some of the guys have played, it’s nice to see a few of the boys come back – obviously Thiago gets along and shows his quality.
“We will stay united, we will continue to connect and we just need to get this last piece of the puzzle right. Like I said I thought it was a good performance, we just needed that last bit to hit the goals. If we keep playing like this hopefully we can run and get more points on the board.
