Three winners and three losers from the Reds’ draw with Sporting Lisbon

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The Reds played out a 2-2 tie with Sporting Lisbon last night in New York, ending their tour of the US with two defeats and a draw.

Results are not the main focus, of course, at this stage of the season, but the game was a chance for each player to show what they are capable of with the new season not far away now.

The winners

Jordan Henderson was the Reds’ driving force from the centre of the pitch, as he so often is when he’s at his best. He was aggressive – not least in winning the header that led to Divock Origi’s levelling goal – and set the tempo expertly.

He was eager to stamp his mark on the match and certainly managed that. You can see his highlights from the game by clicking here.

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Another midfielder, Gini Wijnaldum, also had a good evening. He netted the goal to put the Reds in front in the game and was very lively from a forward position.

He might not play that high up the pitch again for the Reds this season, but he seemed to enjoy it while it lasted.

Divock Origi got himself another goal from being in the right place at the right time; he too was a good performer on an evening when not many players stood out as being at their best.

The Belgian is going to be needed at the start of the campaign when Sadio Mane will still be in his own pre-season stage having been delayed by the Africa Cup of Nations, so it was important for Origi to continue to build confidence and maintain his goalscoring knack here.

The losers

Simon Mignolet was never going to overtake Alisson as the Reds’ number one goalkeeper this summer but he would have been hoping to avoid the error that he made for Sporting’s opener.

He made an excellent double save in the second half (which you can view by clicking here), but the moment that will stick in the mind for most people was the error which should have been a simple enough catch.

Vice-captain James Milner had a difficult night with his passing lacking its usual crispness. He seemed to be a little jaded, which is no shock during a gruelling pre-season tour.

It’s not anything to worry about but he will want to get back up to his normal standard as soon as possible.

And finally, neither Ryan Kent nor Harry Wilson did anything of note in their 28 minutes on the field. With both needing to grab matches by the scruff of the neck a little more often to prove their worth to Jurgen Klopp, that was a slight disappointment.

They’ll be looking to impress a little more in the game against Napoli in Scotland on Sunday evening.

More Stories Divock Origi Gini Wijnaldum Harry Wilson James Milner Jordan Henderson Ryan Kent Simon Mignolet Sporting Lisbon