Luis Diaz looks in ruthless form, Mo Salah remains indispensible, and Arne Slot has a tough task ahead of facing Ipswich: THINGS WE LEARNED from Liverpool’s thrashing of Sevilla

Liverpool continued their impressive pre-season under Arne Slot by recording their fourth straight win with a resounding 4-1 victory over Spanish side Sevilla at Anfield on Sunday afternoon.

Luis Diaz scored twice on his debut under new head coach Slot, after a sublime, weak volley from Diogo Jota and a fine finish from 17-year-old summer star Trey Nyoni.

It was the first of two friendly matches on the same day for Slot’s men, with the Reds playing against fellow countrymen Las Palmas, with kick-off behind closed doors.

Mail Sport’s Lewis Steele was at the first game. Here are his key takeaways.

Can Diaz discover a relentless attack in front of goal?

There is a strong feeling among fans that Sadio Mane’s prolific nature has never been replaced after the Senegal star left for Bayern Munich. Diaz and Cody Gakpo have played on the left but have never matched Mane’s goalscoring prowess.

While Mane has scored 120 goals in 269 games for the Reds, an average of one goal every 2.24 games, Diaz has scored 24 in 98, a rate of around one every 4.08 games. Numbers don’t tell the whole story, but the Colombian’s end product certainly falls into the ‘can improve’ category.

It would be an exaggeration to draw too many conclusions based on Diaz’s first 62 minutes of pre-season, but his two goals gave ample reason for optimism ahead of his third full season at Anfield after joining from Porto in January 2022.

Diaz, 27, started last season reasonably well but, through no fault of his own, lost his regular starting place after his father was kidnapped in Colombia and he was absent for a period.

The forward has shown glimpses without ever quite setting the world on fire. But Slot and his backroom staff have been holding individual sessions to work on attackers’ off-ball movement and Diaz will certainly benefit from that extra coaching.

He was sharp throughout and the first goal was exactly what Liverpool fans were crying out for: action. Diaz cut in from the left and fired the ball into the top corner of the goal without hesitation. His second was a tap-in, but he was in the right place at the right time.

Which fringe players would like a starting place at Ipswich?

If you’ve been reading Mail Sport’s musings this summer, particularly on the three-match tour of the United States, you’ll recall many a lyrical moment involving young defender Jarell Quansah.

This time last year, the 21-year-old had yet to make his first-team debut for Liverpool. But after making 33 appearances last season – and earning a call-up to the England senior team – Quansah is now pushing to become the No.2 centre-back at Anfield.

It goes without saying that captain Virgil van Dijk is still the main man, but Quansah is now convincingly showing that he is the regular starting defender alongside the Dutchman, his idol, after yet another impressive performance.

Ibrahima Konate was due to play in the second friendly of the day, but Quansah is pushing hard to get on the teamsheet against Ipswich in the Premier League opener next Saturday. He had a few shaky moments here, but it was another enjoyable afternoon overall.

Elsewhere, Kostas Tsimikas has been a mainstay this pre-season after his international side Greece failed to qualify for the European Championship, putting him in the door to replace Slot from day one of his reign.

With Andy Robertson not fully fit – he is struggling with an injury he sustained in the spring and did not play on the US tour, although he is now back in full training – Tsimikas may get a chance to start in Ipswich.

Another man hoping to force his way into the reckoning on a regular basis is Ryan Gravenberch, the Dutch midfielder. He had a slow first season at Anfield but has now moved into a deeper role under compatriot Slot and put in another impressive performance here.

Salah is still the main man

There was a time in the second half of last season when pundits thought Mohamed Salah’s best days were behind him. While pre-season isn’t the best barometer, one thing you could say for sure based on Slot’s first few weeks is that Salah is still the main man.

After pulling out of the Africa Cup of Nations midway through the tournament due to injury, Salah never really hit his peak form in the final months of the season, which was probably one of the main reasons why Liverpool’s title bid failed.

There was also a public spat with Jurgen Klopp when the former manager clashed with his Egyptian forward in an away match at West Ham, where Salah had started as a substitute. “If I speak today, there will be fire,” were Salah’s words as he left the London Stadium.

But Salah, who turned 32 this summer, has devoted his last few months to getting back to full fitness – he turned down an invitation to play for Egypt at the Olympics – and he still looks as sharp as ever, despite the fact that he is not getting any younger.

Throughout Liverpool’s pre-season tour and victory over Sevilla on Sunday, Salah has made incisive runs of the ball behind defenders. He was perhaps unlucky not to score in the Spanish side’s defeat, with several efforts either saved or going just wide.

Slot remains cautious about Zubimendi talks

Meanwhile, head coach Arne Slot has reiterated that it is not easy to improve the “really strong team” he took over from Jurgen Klopp, while the Dutchman refused to comment on speculation linking Liverpool to Real Sociedad midfielder Martin Zubimendi.

The club are reportedly doing everything they can to convince the Spanish European Championship winner to leave his boyhood club and are hoping he will agree a move to Merseyside in the coming days.

Slot said: ‘As a club we always look to strengthen the selection, but it is not that easy to strengthen the selection, if you have seen both games today. I have said before that I have inherited a really strong team and if we can – and if we think it is possible – we will strengthen the selection. But only if we can and only if we think it is possible.’

Liverpool drew 0-0 with Spanish side Las Palmas in their second friendly of the day, this time behind closed doors at Anfield. It was a good workout, with 12 players playing 90 minutes in the double fixture.