Liverpool's hopes of qualifying from Group B of the Champions League took a blow this evening as they were beaten 1-0 by Basel at St Jakob-Park.
The hosts got the winning goal seven minutes after the restart as Marco Streller swept home a loose ball in the area after Liverpool had failed to deal with a corner.
Here, Sports Mole takes a look at who impressed on a miserable night for the visitors.
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BASEL
Goal
Tomas Vaclik: Had very little to do all night. Was never truly tested by a toothless Liverpool attack, but was quick out on a couple of occasions when needed. (7/10)
Defence
Fabian Schar: Solid performance from the defender, who kept Liverpool at bay all night. Balotelli had very little impact on the match, largely down to Schar's contribution. (7/10)
Marek Suchy: Another who contributed to a solid defensive performance. Looked shaky early on but grew into the match and put in an accomplished display. (7/10)
Behrang Safari: Lasted just nine minutes before being forced off with what looked like a knee injury. (6/10)
Taulant Xhaka: Decent performance having been moved around in a tactical reshuffle following Safari's early injury. Coped well with the change. (6/10)
Midfield
Fabian Frei: Solid performance in the middle of the park alongside Serey Die as Basel got the better of the midfield battle. Broke up play well and did much of the unseen work. (7/10)
Geoffrey Serey Die: Very impressive performance in midfield. Did his defensive job really well and was also one of his side's main threats going forward. (8/10)
Ahmed Hamoudi: Caused a number of problems down the wing for Manquillo and had one or two bright moments in the final third. (7/10)
Mohamed El Nenny: Decent display from the Egyptian, who showed a few moments of class here and there. Failed to test Mignolet with some wayward shooting, but didn't make things too easy for the Liverpool defence. (6/10)
Breel Embolo: Promising performance from the youngster. Started really brightly but tired a little in the latter stages before being withdrawn. (7/10)
Attack
Marco Streller: Was in the right place at the right time for the winning goal, and made no mistake from close range. A good display from the veteran. (7/10)
Substitutes
Derlis Gonzalez: Got almost a full game having replaced Safari in the ninth minute and posed Liverpool a few problems with his pace down the right. Unlucky not to be awarded a penalty in the second half. (7/10)
Davide Calla: Came on for Embolo with nine minutes remaining and didn't really have time to do anything. (6/10)
Luca Zuffi: Introduced in stoppage time to waste a few valuable seconds. (6/10)
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LIVERPOOL
Goal
Simon Mignolet: Made a very good stop low to his left shortly before the goal, which he couldn't really do much about. It could be argued that he should have parried the ball away from danger, but it was a reaction stop from Skrtel's back header and he couldn't do much more. (6/10)
Defence
Javi Manquillo: Was found wanting a few times at the back but threatened going forward on a couple of occasions. As with his teammates, though, his final ball was disappointing. (6/10)
Martin Skrtel: Largely at fault for the winner as he nodded the ball back to his own goal. Kept Streller quiet for long spells other than that, but it was a telling mistake. (5/10)
Dejan Lovren: Solid display from Lovren, who ensured that Mignolet didn't have too much to do all night. Had two half-chances in the first 45 minutes that he perhaps should have done better with. (6/10)
Jose Enrique: Endured a terrible opening 20 minutes to the match, being caught out of position on numerous occasions and wasting possession time after time. Grew into the match and made a few decent contributions going forward, but overall a shaky return to the starting lineup. (5/10)
Midfield
Steven Gerrard: Caught in possession in a dangerous area in the first half, but got away with it. Found very little space in midfield and struggled to exert any authority on the match. (5/10)
Jordan Henderson: Once again, proved to be a willing runner alongside Gerrard in midfield, but didn't have a great influence on the game. (6/10)
Lazar Markovic: Lively at times, but his final ball and decision-making in the Basel half was poor. Still very raw, but will need to improve quickly if he is to keep his place in the team. (5/10)
Philippe Coutinho: Liverpool's best moments came when he got on the ball, but that didn't happen often enough. Showed a few glimpses of his obvious ability, but failed to find the killer pass. (6/10)
Raheem Sterling: So often Liverpool's star performer, but a night to forget for Sterling. Had an early goal disallowed and wasted a couple of other very good openings. Was out of sorts all night and looked a little jaded. Was also fortunate not to give away a penalty at the start of the second half. (4/10)
Attack
Mario Balotelli: Saw a fine long-range free kick saved and contributed with a couple of nice touches in Liverpool's rare pieces of quality. However, once again lacked movement up front and seemed to spend most of his time either on the floor or offside. Got some rough treatment from the defenders and was not given any sympathy by the ref. (5/10)
Substitutes
Adam Lallana: Made a difference when he came on, most notably setting up a one-on-one for Sterling that the youngster fluffed. (7/10)
Rickie Lambert: Came on with just under 10 minutes remaining and held the ball up fairly well on a couple of occasions, but was unable to have a huge impact. (6/10)
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