Liverpool progressed to the knockout stages of the Champions League after triumphing in this must-win game at Anfield last night.

Had Napoli scored in the dying minutes of the game, as they very nearly did, Jurgen Klopp’s side would have been out and the Serie A side would have progressed. But Liverpool were sent through to the next round by a Mohamed Salah goal and saved from an early exit by a momentous save in added time from their goalkeeper, Alisson.

Liverpool manager Klopp was keen to make sure that the credit for the win went to the entire team and not just the key players at each end of the pitch.

“That save was just incredible, but, if we don’t defend the whole pitch like we did, Ali cannot make 20 saves like the last one,” said the German. 

“He did it. Incredible, unbelievable. I never saw something similar. But still he needs the other boys around.”

His side scored the important goal in the first half when Salah latched on to James Milner’s pass before wrong-footing the otherwise excellent Kalidou Koulibaly. The Egyptian then slid the ball underneath a diving David Ospina. It was typically swift and typically Salah.

Napoli created chances of their own and finished the game having had more possession than their hosts, with 52 per cent. 

They should have scored in the dying minutes when Arkadiusz Milik stole in front of Dejan Lovren, but his big chance was met by a big save from Brazilian stopper Alisson who reacted brilliantly to position himself in front of the shot.

Klopp spent plenty of time interacting with the crowd during this game and there’s no doubt he views Anfield as a 12th man in these situations. He thanked the supporters for their contribution.

“I want to say thank you, Anfield. It was unbelievable what the people did tonight,” he added. 

“The atmosphere they created was just so special. I couldn’t be more proud of all the people involved — thank you.”