Player ratings as Wout Faes nightmare gifts Reds win

A forgetful defensive display from Leicester saw Liverpool snatch a 2-1 win and three points without actually scoring themselves on Friday evening.

The Reds got off to the worst possible start when Leicester burst ahead inside five minutes, but somehow headed into half-time 2-1 up thanks to Wout Faes, who had a game to forget to say the least.

Liverpool improved in the second half and looked more settled, but with both sides looking incredibly wasteful, the two own-goals would ultimately prove the difference and put Liverpool within a point of fifth-placed Manchester United in the Premier League table.

In a game they would’ve backed themselves to control and win, Liverpool found themselves behind after just four minutes when Leicester launched a ball long, won the three phases after and allowed Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall to burst through the hosts’ defence with staggering ease to fire past Alisson.

Proceedings remained high-paced after that, even with Leicester losing Patson Daka to injury. Liverpool tried to find a rhythm in possession but didn’t look after the ball well enouch and found themselves caught out several times by the Foxes, who were set up brilliantly to counter attack.

It could’ve been two after 20 minutes when Jamie Vardy slipped a low cross to the back post, but Trent Alexander-Arnold read his intentions well. Liverpool then went down the other end and found the back of the net six minutes later thanks to a gaffe from Danny Ward, but the offside flag spared his blushes.

There were no offside flags for Faes to hide behind after 38 minutes, though, when he misread his surroundings and attacked a poor, low cross that would’ve gone sailed into safety had he listened to his goalkeeper behind him. Instead, he threw himself into the ball and it shanked backwards, over himself and Ward to bring the Reds level.

Not satisfied with one own-goal, Faes seemingly took it upon himself to grab a second on the cusp of half-time. A disastrous piece of Leicester defending saw Darwin Nunez burst through and dink Ward, but his effort rebounded off the post. Faes couldn’t sort his feet out, though, and smashed the ball into the roof of the net to give Liverpool a lead at half-time.

As expected, heading into half-time losing as a result of two own-goals at Anfield took the wind out of Leicester’s sails.

Liverpool picked up after the break and put in a more dominant display in possession, with changes on the hour mark helping them. They couldn’t find a third, though,…