Salah struck five minutes from time after substitute Darwin Nunez’s header was saved on the line by Alex Merrett. Luciano Spalletti’s side finished top of Group A thanks to a 4-1 home win over Liverpool, but for Klopp, who took charge of the Anfield club for the 400th time, win number 249 was first, given the doubts and questions circulating about his team. form this season. Núñez added a second deep in injury time after a VAR review overturned the initial decision to disallow his tap-in for offside. The group final represented Klopp’s 100th game as manager in the Champions League, for Liverpool and Borussia Dortmund, and a chance to restore confidence ahead of Sunday’s league visit to Tottenham. There was also a point to prove against a Napoli side that inflicted Liverpool’s heaviest European defeat since 1966 at the start of the campaign, and which Klopp described as arguably the most knowledgeable side on the continent. Curtis Jones and Ibrahima Konate made just their second starts of the season as the Liverpool manager made four changes from Saturday’s home defeat by Leeds. Jones was deployed on the left of Liverpool’s attack and was presented with the first chance of the game when Trent Alexander-Arnold and Salah combined to pierce the Napoli defence. The midfielder was alert to Salah’s ball in behind Leo Østigård, but so was Meret, and with the keeper at his feet, Jones cut in from a tight angle. It was the only real threat from either side in the first half hour. It wasn’t that the two teams were overly cautious, but the security of knowing that a place in the knockout stages awaited next year was evident throughout. Both defenses were relatively comfortable, although at least Liverpool were able to stretch Napoli and enliven proceedings after a third of the game. The hosts responded quickly after Tanguy Ndombele, receiving Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s pass inside the box, fired the visitors’ first shot of the night straight at Alisson. Salah broke down the right and teed up Thiago Alcantara as the midfielder arrived unmarked on the edge of the Napoli penalty area. Thiago went for a layup over the power and Mere pushed his shot wide. Seconds later Roberto Firmino swept Alexander-Arnold’s cross back into the area with a delightful, airborne backheel and Jones advanced under pressure from Napoli captain Giovanni Di Lorenzo. Jones then put Salah clear on goal, but Merett saved one-on-one before the Egypt international was flagged for offside. Mohamed Salah heads in from close range to put Liverpool ahead. Photo: Peter Powell/EPA Liverpool suffered another injury blow early in the second half when James Milner was forced off with a knock to the head. The 36-year-old, who needed treatment for a knock on the head just before half-time, overstretched himself while trying to close down Mathías Olivera and immediately signaled to the bench. Harvey Elliott entered the fray as the frustrated midfielder headed for the tunnel. Klopp’s problems appeared to deepen when Østigård sent a diving header past Alisson five minutes later. A Fabinho foul on Olivera gave Kvaratskhelia the chance to whip in a free-kick from the left and the impressive Georgian delivered to perfection. The crossbar found its way over Victor Osimhen and Konaté into the heart of the Liverpool area, where the Napoli defender, unmarked by Virgil van Dijk, headed home at full stretch. The goal was awarded but after a three-minute VAR review – forcing players from both sides to warm up as they awaited the verdict – the centre-back’s ear and shoulder were found to be offside. Start your evenings with the Guardian’s view of the world of football Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain information about charities, online advertising and content sponsored by external parties. For more information, see our Privacy Policy. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and Google’s Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Napoli were furious and defender Kim Min-jae went over Firmino’s back when the match resumed but somehow escaped a booking. Kvaratskhelia had a good chance to break Liverpool’s composure but, from Osimhen’s deep cross at the far post, the unmarked forward volleyed past Alisson. There was more quality in the second half, to be fair, with Napoli’s strong midfield taking the game to Liverpool and the hosts dangerous down the flanks. Klopp signaled his intent to win the game by bringing on Núñez at the expense of Jones and the switch paid dividends when the Uruguay international was instrumental in Liverpool’s late success. The centre-forward met Kosta Csimika’s offside corner with a powerful downward header that almost cleared the line before Mere could get away. But the Napoli keeper only managed to turn the ball to Salah and from a yard out he pushed the ball in. Nunez grabbed the second goal when Merrett saved Van Dijk’s header from another Cimika corner in stoppage time. The goal was initially ruled offside by the assistant referee only for VAR to detect that Di Lorenzo had played the substitute in.
