Liverpool ran out 2-0 winners from their trip to Aston Villa this afternoon.

Fabio Borini broke the deadlock early on, before Rickie Lambert made sure of the outcome 11 minutes from the end.

Here, Sports Mole has rated the performances of the players on show at Villa Park.

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Goal

Brad Guzan: The American goalkeeper made some decent stops, while he was powerless to prevent either of Liverpool's goals. (7/10)

Defence

Alan Hutton: Used to getting forward, the right-back was confined to his own half for much of the contest. He did little wrong defensively. (6/10)

Jores Okore: Solid enough for most of the encounter and made some decent interceptions. The youngster certainly showed signs of being a decent Premier League defender. (6/10)

Nathan Baker: Not a good day at the office for Baker, who left Borini free to score. Later, he missed two good chances to equalise. (4/10)

Aly Cissokho: Up against his former club, the left-back had a quiet outing. (5/10)

Midfield

Carlos Sanchez: It was a combative display from the Colombian, who covered plenty of ground. (6/10)

Ashley Westwood: The midfielder was neat and tidy in possession and also sent some decent deliveries into the Liverpool penalty area. (7/10)

Fabian Delph: Back in the team, Delph was energetic against a side that is supposed to be keen on his services. (6/10)

Tom Cleverley: Another inept display from the Manchester United loanee. He was anonymous for most of the game and didn't appear to want the ball on occasions. (4/10)

Attack

Gabriel Agbonlahor: On a couple of occasions the striker got to open up and use his pace, but the service to him was neither great, nor frequent. (6/10)

Christian Benteke: The Belgian battled hard, despite being isolated for much of the contest. He will probably be disappointed to have seen his one chance saved. (6/10)

Substitutes

Carles Gil: Having recently arrived from Valencia, Gil showed some bright signs. He kept the ball moving and looked to get into the Liverpool area whenever he could. (7/10)

Andreas Weimann: He came on with 30 minutes remaining, but struggled to make an impact. (5/10)

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Goal

Simon Mignolet: The Liverpool stopper will have been happy to have had a quiet afternoon with little to do. (6/10)

Defence

Emre Can: He still doesn't look like a natural defender, but there was some decent challenges from the youngster. (6/10)

Martin Skrtel: Playing at the heart of the defence, Skrtel was a solid influence. He kept things simple and almost scored at the other end. (7/10)

Mamadou Sakho: Like his fellow defenders, there was not too much for Sakho to do. (6/10)

Midfield

Alberto Moreno: The left wing-back showed great pace on occasions and even found the net with a neat finish, but it was rightly chalked off for offside. (6/10)

Lucas: In the holding role, Lucas did well. He made plenty of tackles and knew his limits in possession of the ball. (6/10)

Jordan Henderson: Full of energy, Henderson broke forward with purpose, which saw him set up his side's opening goal. (8/10)

Philippe Coutinho: The Brazilian playmaker started brightly as he made some dangerous runs into Villa territory, but as the game wore on, his influence faded. (6/10)

Lazar Markovic: Having done so well in recent outings, Markovic was very quiet today. (5/10)

Attack

Raheem Sterling: Given permission to roam, Sterling made the most of his freedom. He popped up on the left, right and centre in a lively showing, which should have been capped by a goal. (7/10)

Fabio Borini: Got his goal and probably should have had more, but he did his chances of getting further starts no harm. (7/10)

Substitutes

Jose Enrique: The Spaniard replaced Moreno, but doesn't have the pace to make the same impact as his compatriot. Even so, he kept things tight defensively. (6/10)

Rickie Lambert: His delight at scoring Liverpool's second goal was there for all to see. It was just reward for a good cameo off the bench. (7/10)

Jordan Ibe: Having returned from a loan stint at Derby County, the youngster had little time to have an influence on the game. (6/10)

Written by
Liam Apicella