Player ratings as Liverpool secure spot in Europa League last 16 with 4-0 win over LASK

On Thursday night, Liverpool secured their spot in the Europa League's last 16 by convincingly defeating Austria's LASK 4-0 at Anfield. This was also facilitated by the deadlock between Toulouse and Union Saint-Gilloise in another group match.

Despite the outcomes of both games, Liverpool's triumph would have confirmed their advancement a game in advance, ensuring they top the group and avoid the initial knockout round.

The momentum started in the first half with Luis Diaz's fourth goal of the month for his team and country. This was quickly followed by Cody Gakpo's contribution, and Mohamed Salah's 199th Liverpool goal from a penalty in the following half, which finished off a strong performance. Gakpo scored the fourth goal during added time.

LASK commenced the game aggressively, aware that they had nothing to lose by confronting their distinguished rivals. Their performance was diminished by poor delivery of the final ball, similar to Gakpo who, despite having an open chance, missed his shot.

However, where Gakpo faltered, Diaz executed perfectly. The Colombian was instrumental in driving the ball into open space for teammate Joe Gomez, and then heading his cross into the box, putting the Reds ahead.

Although admirable in their attacking attempts, LASK was conceding too easily, and Diaz was at the heart of Liverpool's second goal. An exchange with Salah led to the stand-in captain sprinting into the box and delivering a cross to Gakpo for a tap in.

Liverpool came close to scoring a stunning third goal when Kostas Tsimikas' shot struck the crossbar from the corner of the penalty area. Gomez, who has yet to make a score, also had a close shot.

Tobias Lawal, the goalkeeper for LASK, from an effort to reach the ball before Gakpo, ended up committing a rash foul that resulted in a penalty for Liverpool early in the second half. Salah remained calm and scored the goal with a precise shot to the bottom corner.

Gakpo, after securing the penalty, was on the hunt for his second goal of the night but narrowly missed. Lawal's outstanding saves against a deflected shot from Harvey Elliott and a close-range shot from substitute Darwin Nunez prevented Liverpool from widening their lead.

For more than an hour, Liverpool's goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher did nothing but watch, before finally making a save against LASK substitute Ibrahim Mustapha, who was in plenty of space. Kelleher also denied a shot from Moses Usor as time elapsed.

Seeking to improve his personal score, Gakpo succeeded in the additional time at the end of the game, finding the goal with an assist from Trent Alexander-Arnold.