Despite having had success with Luis Diaz up front against Leverkusen, Liverpool moved Diaz back to the left wing and Darwin Nunez took over as a centre forward.

Neither team had many clear-cut chances in the opening 15 minutes, but in the 20th minute the home side launched a lightning counter-attack, with Nunez running past goalkeeper Martinez to score.

Liverpool were unfortunate to lose Alexander-Arnold to injury, but they maintained control of the game.

Nunez should have scored twice in the 32nd minute, but he shot high into the air after being set up by Salah in a one-on-one with the goalkeeper.

Aston Villa had few chances, but in just over a minute, their corners forced Kelleher to make two fantastic saves, keeping Liverpool in the lead at half-time.

Early in the second half, the visitors could have equalized 1-1 if Rogers had not shot wide of the post in a very favorable position. Liverpool played quite cautiously in this half to preserve the score. Although they did not create many clear-cut chances, Liverpool did not face many threats from the opponent.

And when the opportunity came, Salah knew how to take advantage of it. In the 84th minute, Salah took advantage of Diego Carlos’s failed clearance, rushed down to face Martinez and fired the ball into the Aston Villa net, sealing a 2-0 victory for Liverpool.