Liverpool maintained their unbeaten start to the Premier League season with a 1-0 win away at Bournemouth on Sunday.
A tight game in which defences were on top was settled in the 57th minute, when Alexander Isak fired home from close range after Bournemouth failed to clear a dangerous cross from Cody Gakpo.
The result sees Liverpool stay right in touch with the Champions League places as we head into the first international break of the season. Meanwhile, Marco Rose is still winless in five Premier League matches after taking over from now-Reds’ boss Andoni Iraola this summer.
Isak-Gakpo partnership strikes again
Alexander Isak and Cody Gakpo were two Liverpool players under immense pressure heading into this season, following underwhelming 2025/26 campaigns, to say the least.
Both players have answered the call so far, and Sunday extended that redemption arc.
Ahead of kick-off, Gakpo-to-Isak was the only assister-to-goalscorer partnership in the Premier League to combine for more than two goals, with the former setting up all three of the latter’s strikes so far this season.
Gakpo won’t be credited with the assist this time, with his cross deflecting off a Bournemouth defender. However, it was the Dutchman who carved out the opportunity for Isak to open the scoring, going on a blistering run that left two opponents in the dust before delivering a dangerous ball into the box.
Isak finished emphatically and, after just five games this term, has already beaten the three-goal tally he took 14 games to accrue in his debut campaign at Anfield. And for what it’s worth, after just five games, Gakpo needs just two more assists to match his five-assist tally from 36 games in the Premier League last season.
A lack of depth in forward areas has raised eyebrows at Liverpool, but Isak and Gakpo are developing a fearsome partnership that seems to have all the right ingredients to make Iraola’s men challengers.
- Key stat: 57.14% of Alexander Isak’s Premier League goals for Liverpool have been assisted by Cody Gakpo.
Bournemouth all bark and no bite after European exertions
There was an electricity around the Vitality on Sunday following Bournemouth’s historic 2-1 win at Real Sociedad in their first-ever European fixture on Thursday. However, rather than building on that momentous evening, there appeared to be a hangover.
It has to be said that Bournemouth competed well with Liverpool on Sunday. The Reds shaded possession (46%-54%), but it was the Cherries who maintained more pressure in the final third, coming out on top for touches in the opposition box (27-19), crosses (27-13) and passes in the final third (144-137).
However, for all their bark, Bournemouth had no bite. Rose’s men were able to muster just nine shots compared to Liverpool’s 12, to the tune of a 0.76-1.57 defeat in the xG stakes — alongside the all-important 1-0 defeat in the most important statistic.
Credit must be given to Liverpool’s backline, of course. Their centre-backs, in particular, were dominant, with Virgil van Dijk making 12 clearances and winning four of his six aerial duels, while Jeremy Jacquet made three tackles, two interceptions, a block and two clearances. Alisson also got down brilliantly at his near post to keep out an Evanilson flick in the first half.
But throughout the course of the match, Bournemouth were far too guilty of lacking a killer pass and impatiently lumping an aimless ball into the box when they ran out of ideas.
Rayan failed to complete a single dribble and registered zero shots on one flank. Marcus Tavernier only completed one dribble and also failed to fire off a shot on the other side. The duo created just two chances combined, while Ryan Christie in the No.10 role didn’t create any chances and played just one line-breaking pass.
Liverpool did a good job defensively and now have three league clean sheets on the spin. But Bournemouth also made it too easy for them. This may serve as a stark wake-up call that the Thursday-Sunday grind of the Europa League is going to be no joke for the Cherries.