Burnley v Liverpool ratings: Odobert 7, Foster 4; Nunez 8, Salah 6

Klopp's team climb to top of the table as Jota makes memorable return from injury

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  James Trafford 6/10

  BURNLEY RATINGS: Trafford. Made a good save to deny Salah early in the game. Made another stop to prevent Diaz with his legs in the closing stages. Getty Images

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  Vitinho 5/10

  Endured a tough outing against Gakpo in the first half and Diaz in the second. Should have done more to prevent Gakpo from playing the ball to Nunez in the build-up to the opener. EPA

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  Charlie Taylor 5/10

  Struggled to cope with the runs of Salah on the left and didn't offer much going forward. Did well to intercept a chipped pass from Endo that would have otherwise played Salah through on goal. PA

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  Jordan Beyer 5/10

  Made a last-ditch interception to stop Salah from running through on goal in the 41st minute. Later got on the end of a corner kick but was denied by a Nunez block. AP

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  Dara O'Shea 6/10

  Easily the home side’s best defender against the Reds. Made several blocks and clearances. AP

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  Sander Berge 5/10

  Failed to close down Nunez quickly before he took the shot that opened the scoring. Later failed to keep an effort on target when he tried to test Alisson in the 65th minute. PA

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  Josh Brownhill 6/10

  Improved alongside his teammates in the second half but his decision-making left a lot to be desired. Went close with a shot that went just wide in the eleventh minute. PA

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  Wilson Odobert 7/10

  Displayed lovely footwork to get past Alexander Arnold and whip in a cross towards Gudmundsson. Danced past three Liverpool players but fluffed his lines when tried to have an effort at Alisson’s goal. Caused the Liverpool backline problems all through the game. PAShow less

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  Mike Tresor 4/10

  A disappointing performance from the winger. He struggled to get involved upfront, and didn't do much defensively either. EPA

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  Lyle Foster 4/10

  Another player who struggled to get involved up front for Kompany’s side. Made a mess of his pass when he had a chance to play Odobert through on goal. Reuters

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  Zeki Amdouni 5/10

  Should have at least tested Alisson in the fifth minute when he found himself in a lot of space at the edge of the Reds’ penalty area. Lost possession in front of his own area and almost gifted the Reds a second goal. APShow less

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  Johann Gudmundsson 5/10

  SUBS: (Tresor, 61) Failed to keep his header on target when he got on the end of Odobert’s cross at the back post in the second half. Struggled to get involved after that chance. PA

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  Bruun Larsen N/A

  (Amdouni, 85) Got close to being the hero for the home side but his shot went just wide in the 85th minute. Reuters

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  Nathan Redmond N/A

  (Foster, 85) The experienced Redmond failed to influence the game during his cameo. Aaron Ramsey (Brownhill, 90) - N/A. PA

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  Alisson 6/10

  LIVERPOOL RATINGS: A straight-forward outing for the Reds’ goalkeeper. He wasn’t required to make a save during the entire 90 minutes. Getty Images

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  Trent Alexander-Arnold 6/10

  Struggled against the skillful Odobert in the second half and wasn’t as influential going forward. Hit a fierce left-footed effort that went just wide in the 86th minute. Reuters

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  Joe Gomez 7/10

  Kept Tresor quiet on the left and also attacked well. Displayed great positioning to stop Amdouni from playing Tresor through on goal. Getty Images

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  Virgil van Dijk 7/10

  Wasn’t required to do much due to Burnley’s failure to attack with precision. Used his height well when defending crosses. Getty Images

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  Jarell Quansah 7/10

  Another impressive performance from the youngster who didn't look out of place against Burnley’s attackers. Made a crucial block to intercept Amdouni’s cutback into the danger area. Reuters

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  Wataru Endo 6/10

  Hit a low shot that forced Trafford into a smart save in the 39th minute. Made a shocking pass straight into Larsen's path in a dangerous area close to the end of the match. Reuters

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  Harvey Elliott 7/10

  Had the Reds’ first shot on target in the third minute. Thought he had doubled the visitors' lead with a cushioned finish into the bottom corner, but the goal was ruled out due to Salah being offside. AFPShow less

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  Ryan Gravenberch 6/10

  Average performance from Gravenberch in the middle of the pitch for the Reds. Has to do better going forward. EPA

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  Darwin Nunez 8/10

  Opened the scoring with a curler into the bottom corner. Had a number of half chances in the first half but failed to take them, invisible in the second. Reuters

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  Mohamed Salah 6/10

  Forced Trafford into a wonderful save in the seventh minute. Left the crossbar shaking with a fierce effort in the 33rd minute. Getty Images

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  Cody Gakpo 7/10

  Assisted the first goal with a simple pass to Nunez at the edge of the penalty area. Should have done better when he had a chance to make it two in the ninth minute. Fluffed his lines when he had to set up Salah for a second goal. PAShow less

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  Curtis Jones 7/10

  SUBS: Jones (Gravenberch, 67) Added fresh energy to the visitors' midfield and helped wrestle back control of the midfield. Did well to cushion his header back across the face of goal for his teammates to attack. EPAShow less

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  Dominik Szoboszlai 7/10

  (Gakpo, 67) Diverted his attempt back into the danger area when he had an open goal to aim at in the 72nd minute. Hit a fierce effort from the edge of the penalty area, but his shot was always going wide. ReutersShow less

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  Luis Diaz 7/10

  (Elliott, 67) Tried to make it two with a well-placed effort in the 86th minute, but Trafford was equal to his effort. Executed a lovely backheel to assist Jota’s goal. Getty Images

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  Diogo Jota N/A

  (Nunez, 84) Made it two a few minutes after coming on with a finish that went through Trafford’s leg in the 90th minute. PA

Liverpool climbed to the top of the Premier League as Darwin Nunez ended his goal drought to inspire a 2-0 win against Burnley.

Jurgen Klopp's Reds took an early lead through Nunez at Turf Moor and held on despite wasting a host of chances. Nunez's eighth goal this season was his first for 12 games since he netted against Bournemouth in the League Cup on November 1.

Diogo Jota, back from a month's injury absence, wrapped up the victory late on to leave Liverpool two points above second placed Arsenal, who have a game in hand.

After draws with Manchester United and Arsenal before Christmas, this was an important victory for Liverpool's title ambitions.

After the win, Klopp said: "That's nice. It will probably change and that's no problem. It was not perfect but we are where we are."

The manager added that Jota is a crucial player for Liverpool as the squad prepares to lose Egypt captain Mohamed Salah to the Africa Cup of Nations.

Jota, 27, missed eight matches after sustaining a muscle injury during their 1-1 draw against Manchester City in November.

With midfield trio Thiago Alcantara, Stefan Bajcetic, Alexis Mac Allister, winger Ben Doak and defenders Andrew Robertson, Joel Matip and Kostas Tsimikas all sidelined due to injury, the return of Jota was a welcome sight for Klopp.

Klopp said: "I love Jota, but he missed chances in the past as well. It's the nature of the thing that we always ask for, always the players who are not involved and then all of a sudden, they think they can change the world.

"Diogo is an incredibly important player for us. Having him changed the whole dynamic. The goal he scored today is the goal of a boy full of conviction. Good technique, obviously, but full of conviction because he had no chance to create any kind of doubt in the last few weeks because he was in rehab."

Player ratings from the match can be seen in the picture gallery above. To view the next image, click on the arrows or swipe if on a mobile device.