It’s been a really poor season for Liverpool so far with little to get excited about. And, after more bad news this week about Steven Gerrard leaving the club at the end of the season, the 1-0 victory at Sunderland will at least bring watery smiles back to the faces of the Liverpool fans.
But there was a really encouraging element to the game on Saturday – that was the performance of Lazar Markovic.
He has taken a long while to settle in after his big money move to Liverpool in the summer. Some onlookers had questioned the value of a player who couldn’t quite get to grips with the pace of the game in England.
But his performance against Sunderland was thrilling. This lad moves like Messi and really punctuated the game with some fine moments. His goal, which decided the match, was a scrappy affair. But he also hit another overhead scissor kick which so nearly came off and illustrated that this is a player of exquisite technique.
Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers has been scrutinised for his activity in the transfer market, with arguably more duds than top performers acquired during his tenure. It’s just the beginning for Markovic. But if he can build on this performance and continue to draw on that deep well of natural talent then we could be talking about a sensational swoop from Rodgers this time next year.