Premier League Review: Liverpool 2, Ipswich Town 0 (Jota 60′, Salah 65′)
Liverpool’s attack duo, Diogo Jota and Mohamed Salah put a dampener on Ipswich’s Premier League comeback by directing new manager Arne Slot to an initial win. Likewise, two back-to-back promotions under Kieran McKenna saw Ipswich re-enter the top tier after a 22-year hiatus and they initially dominated in a fiercely contested first half, much to the delight of their home crowd at Portman Road.
In the previous season, Liverpool secured third place during Jurgen Klopp’s final term and bolstered their performance following half-time, with Jota making the initial breakthrough in the 60th minute, thanks to an assist from Salah. Salah, five minutes later, transformed from helper to goal-scorer with a slick finish, clinching a 2-0 away victory for Slot’s debut.
Whilst Liverpool began the Arne Slot era with victory against Ipswich, Kieran McKenna’s Ipswich Town prepared for their return to top-flight football. Ipswich made several signings during the summer, however, McKenna indicated earlier that his inaugural line-up would be largely comprised of his longstanding squad, with seven of the starting eleven having been there when they secured their promotion from League One in 2023.
Liverpool, on the other hand, didn’t sign any new players under their new head coach, Slot. His introduction to English football was met with fervour onsite. The match was intense from the get-go, with numerous yellow cards issued early on.
The Ipswich fans almost had a reason to celebrate in the 20th minute when a subpar header from rookie Jacob Greaves was nearly fumbled by Alisson Becker. Another Ipswich player was cautioned before a quick counter-attack culminated in a low shot by Omari Hutchinson that Alisson comfortably saved.
Liverpool sustained control over the ball, won numerous corners, but couldn’t test Christian Walton before half-time thanks to Trent Alexander Arnold’s shot flying over the bar in injury time. A halftime substitution saw Ibrahima Konate replace Jarrell Quansah, resulting in Liverpool returning with increased determination; a shot on goal from Salah was deflected by Greaves while Luis Diaz fired a chance over the bar.
Liam Delap’s penalty claims were disregarded at both ends after a collision with Virgil van Dijik, coupled with Leif Davis being offside so Walton faced no penalty despite tackling Diaz. In a forced substitution by McKenna, an injured Wes Burns was replaced, who narrowly avoided his second yellow card for intentional handball in the first half. This became particularly notable as the away team began to intensify pressure.
In the 59th minute, Jota missed a golden opportunity by heading wide from a perfectly executed ball by Alexander-Arnold. This miss came soon after Alexis Mac Allister was skillfully blocked by Luke Woolfenden. However, about a minute later the score stagnancy was broken.
Alexander-Arnold played a crucial role in the first goal, delivering a splendid through ball to Salah. Salah then passed to Jota who took the chance and cleanly beat Walton. Despite their team being down, Ipswich fans cheered on. Yet, they found themselves trailing by 2 goals five minutes later.
Van Dijik, with a splendid crossfield pass found Salah who exchanged passes with Dominik Szoboszlai and the Liverpool number 11 expertly navigated the ball past Walton. As the home team began to tire, Liverpool continued to create more scoring opportunities. They managed to hold their lead towards the end with Alisson blocking a strike by Ali Al-Hamadi, thus spoiling any chances of a dramatic conclusion to the match.