West Ham 0 Liverpool 4: Coutinho stars as Klopp's men run riot + Highlight

Liverpool took a huge step towards Champions
League qualification as goals from Daniel Sturridge
– on his first Premier League start since January –
and the magnificent Philippe Coutinho helped them
claim a comprehensive 4-0 victory at West Ham.
Sturridge had not started a top-flight match for
Jurgen Klopp's side since featuring in a 2-2 draw
with Sunderland on January 2, but displayed the
clinical edge Liverpool have at times lacked in
front of goal with a superb run and finish midway
through the first half at London Stadium.
Prior to Sturridge's strike, it was Reds who had
gone closest to opening the scoring when Joel
Matip's header struck the woodwork, though the
visitors were fortunate that Andre Ayew did not
restore parity on the cusp of half-time.
Ayew's poor finishing was duly punished, Coutinho
taking matters into his own hands with two terrific
solo efforts in the space of four second-half
minutes, although the second one came with a hint
of controversy.
Georginio Wijnaldum, who had hit the crossbar in
the build-up to Liverpool's second goal, clearly
handled in his own area – inflicting injury on
Winston Reid in the process – but referee Neil
Swarbrick played on, with Coutinho netting 21
seconds later.
Divock Origi added a fourth late on as Liverpool ran
riot to seal a win that represents the perfect
response to Saturday's victories for top-four rivals
Manchester City and Arsenal and moves the Reds
up to third, while a difficult debut season at London
Stadium for West Ham came to a dismal end.

Sam Byram should have put the hosts ahead seven
minutes in, but the defender skewed wide at the
culmination of a slick counter-attack.
Liverpool wasted no time in responding as Matip
got free from Coutinho's corner only for the
crossbar to come to West Ham's rescue.
Klopp's men did have the lead 10 minutes prior to
the interval, though.
Coutinho picked up possession in Liverpool's half
and slid a sublime throughball into Sturridge who,
after beating the offside trap and rounding Adrian,
made no mistake with a neat finish.
West Ham were presented with the ideal
opportunity to level matters just prior to the
interval, but Ayew somehow managed to twice hit
the post from point-blank range.
Wijnaldum thought he had extended Liverpool's
lead before the hour with an audacious volley that
rattled off the frame of the goal, but Coutinho made
sure as, after picking up the loose ball, he
capitalised on hapless defending to fire in from the
edge of the area.
And the result was put beyond all doubt soon after
when officials failed to halt play for what appeared
to be a head injury sustained by Reid and Liverpool
countered, with Coutinho keeping his composure to
thump in his second.
Origi was the next Liverpool player to hit the
woodwork, but the Belgian got his goal with
14 minutes remaining, tucking home from close
range to add further gloss to a one-sided scoreline.