Liverpool’s brilliant and extremely dominant performance has not gone under the radar against Newcastle United. The Reds may have only scored four goals, but overall, they were by far the better team.

Not only did Jurgen Klopp’s side break the record for the highest xG set in the Premier League but they also averaged a touch inside Newcastle’s penalty area every 1.4 minutes. The utter domination perhaps didn’t quite translate in the 4-2 scoreline, but there is plenty to be excited about.

One of the highlights of the night was also the return of Alexis Mac Allister, who has been suffering from an injury over the last couple of weeks. But he returned to action for the last 15 minutes of the game replacing Wataru Endo, who is set to depart for the Asian Cup.

Immediately, Mac Allister caught the eye with his brilliant technique, and showed what the Reds have been missing from the Argentine.

His best moment of the game came when he beat one Newcastle midfielder, and then sent a impeccably weighted through ball past the Magpies’ defensive line to Diogo Jota. The Portuguese could not convert the chance, with Martin Dubravka bringing him down inside the penalty area. However, Mohamed Salah then put the subsequent penalty away.

Pundit impressed by Alexis Mac Allister

Speaking on the BBC’s Monday Night Club podcast, former Blackburn goalkeeper, Paul Robinson was full of praise for Mac Allister and his pass, calling it ‘the pass of the season.’

‘I think we have just seen the pass of the season. Absolutely incredible pass from Alexis Mac Allister, from the outside of his boot, half way inside his own half and sets Jota through,’ Robinson said.

Robinson is probably not wrong. You would struggle to find a better weighted pass from this season. The way Mac Allister split Newcastle’s defence open was him at his best. Having him back in the side is undoubtedly going to be a huge boost for Liverpool.

There is no denying this has been a challenging season for Luis Diaz both on and off the pitch. Even though his father was ultimately freed after his kidnapping in Colombia, it was a deeply concerning situation – which is bound to leave a mark on anyone’s mental wellbeing.

On the pitch, Diaz’s form has been far from perfect. He’s made just one goal contribution in his last nine matches for Liverpool. From a player of his quality – that’s a really poor return and you’d expect a lot better from the winger.

But last night could have been a sign of things turning in the right direction for Diaz. His performance against Newcastle United was by far his best since the beginning of the campaign when he scored twice in two games against Bournemouth and Chelsea.

Diaz was back to his electric best running at defenders and beating players for fun. His excellent break into the penalty area saw him win Liverpool’s first penalty of the game, which could have shifted momentum for the Reds.

The penalty was never converted by Salah, but Diaz then played a role in his opening goal in the second-half. The Colombian’s rapid burst forward created the chance for Darwin Nunez to set-up Salah and break the deadlock.

Diaz’s best of the season

It’s quite telling that Diaz not only produced an eye-catching numbers but he put in his best numbers for the season as well.

Against Newcastle he completed the most dribbles (five) he has completed all season thus breaking his personal record. It was also the most dribbles anyone completed on the pitch for Liverpool on the night.

Diaz’s best asset was always his one vs one ability. If he can continue in this vein of form than losing Mohamed Salah to AFCON may not be such a devastating blow for Liverpool. Especially, since Diogo Jota has also come back firing for the Reds.

Liverpool legend Steve Nicol has given his reaction to rumours that Kylian Mbappe is on his way to Anfield.

Mbappe has long been seen as a potential signing for Liverpool. As the Frenchman enters the final six months of his contract at PSG, the Reds are now said to be well in the hunt to get him.

Nevertheless, Mbappe and his massive wages rocking up on Merseyside has always felt an unlikely scenario.

And speaking to ESPN FC today, Nicol has suggested that although Jurgen Klopp could be the manager to get the best out of the 25-year-old, he doesn’t see it happening.

“Listen, anybody’s going to take him,” said the 62-year-old when told Liverpool are Real Madrid’s closest rivals to sign Mbappe. “If you can afford him, you take him, because the guy is good! He might be a pain in the backside, but maybe Klopp’s the one who can sort him out.”

“I don’t see it. I don’t believe he’s going to end up at Liverpool.”

Nicol plays down Mbappe rumours

For the time being, there can’t be a Liverpool supporter alive who believes Mbappe is coming to their club this summer.

His move to Madrid has felt inevitable for years. Surely 2024 is the year it finally happens.

Having said that though, perhaps there’s no smoke without fire. Mbappe himself is said to be a fan of watching Liverpool under Klopp.

The former Monaco superstar has also previously admitted that his mother is a fan of the Reds.

Without a transfer fee, maybe Liverpool see a move to sign Mbappe next summer as simply being too good a chance to turn down.

For now, the whole world will agree with Nicol’s point of view. At the moment, anything linking the World Cup winner with Liverpool is purely paper talk.

But as time ticks down on Mbappe’s contract in Paris, perhaps we’ll soon get something more concrete to go on.

Although we’d be surprised to hear that Liverpool are in the mix here, you can never truly know what the Reds are plotting behind the scenes. If Liverpool do make an approach, then Mbappe would be wise to consider it.

Liverpool got off to the perfect start in 2024 with a comfortable victory over Newcastle United last night. The result cemented the Reds’ place on top of the Premier League table, and now gives them ascendancy heading into a crucial part of the season.

It’s undoubtedly an exciting time for Liverpool fans. This is a new look Liverpool team that was thoroughly reshuffled last summer and given a fresh face. It’s a young team that is only just getting started – a team that Klopp himself has labelled his 2.0 version.

The fact that Liverpool already finds themselves on top of the Premier League table, above Manchester City and Arsenal, is even more impressive with that context.

But despite all the excitement Virgil van Dijk refused to get bogged down on talks of a potential Premier League title when asked by reporters after the Reds’ victory over Newcastle.

“I’m not going to speak about any of this, I never did and I won’t do it now either,” Van Dijk said as per the Liverpool ECHO.

Van Dijk’s statement is right

The Liverpool captain then continued: “It’s far too early to do that. We are at the start of January, we have players leaving now, we have players coming back from injury, so let’s see what it brings.

“If in February or March we are still up there obviously we have to get the last push going and see if we can squeeze it out. But for now, we just focus on the game ahead and don’t look at others, (and just) try to improve ourselves. That’s always been the experience and it brought us one success over the last six years to win the Premier League and hopefully we will see what happens at the end of the season.”

Virgil van Dijk has every right to be cautious. Liverpool has been in similar situations before – only to narrowly lose out to Manchester City at the end of the season.

On top of that as Van Dijk points out Liverpool is heading into what promises to be a challenging period for Klopp’s side. It remains to be seen how well Liverpool will be able to cope in the absence of Mohamed Salah and Wataru Endo, who could miss a large chunk of next month while on international duty.

However, regardless of what happens this season, Liverpool’s performances so far have been impressive, and that is an exciting sign of the future.

What Liverpool have proven so far is that this new era in the club’s history under Klopp could be just as successful as the first.