Liverpool player ratings vs Brighton: Anfield rises for Mohamed Salah! Egyptian king receives standing ovation after shining in FA Cup win

Liverpool are by no means back to their best. And nor is Mohamed Salah. But there were enough positive signs from both in Saturday night's 3-0 FA Cup fourth-round win over Brighton to suggest that this most trying of seasons might actually end on a positive note for the Reds. Arne Slot's men were actually quite flat in the first half, perhaps exhausted from the effort required to end Sunderland's unbeaten home record in the Premier League in midweek, but they still went into the interval ahead thanks to Curtis Jones' close-range finish from Milos Kerkez's cross.Liverpool were much more convincing after the break, though, and Salah was integral to their improvement, with 'The Egyptian King' teeing up Dominik Szoboszlai for his 10th goal of the season with a sublime touch before completing the scoring by converting a penalty that he had won with a strong and determined run into the area.Overall, it was by no means a vintage performance from the Reds. Brighton had their chances, particularly in the first half. But three goals and a clean sheet cannot be construed as anything but an encouraging outcome for Slot and his struggling side.GOAL rates all of the Liverpool players on show as the Reds reached the fifth round of the FA Cup...Alisson Becker (7/10):Made a hugely important save to deny Diego Gomez in injury time at the end of the first half and also made another important intervention from a Lewis Dunk header shortly after the interval.Curtis Jones (8/10):With Liverpool shorn of so many options at right-back, Jones got the nod and not only did he defend well (aside from one very nearly costly slip!), he also made a wonderfully-timed run into the area to put his side ahead. Moved into midfield when Wirtz went off.Ibrahima Konate (7/10):Gave away a couple of fouls but won a few himself through sheer force of will and while his distribution is sometimes poor, it was top class tonight. Credit where it's due, Konate has been much-improved in recent games.Virgil van Dijk (7/10):A characteristically dominant performance from the captain, who has had his ups and downs of late but was pretty much flawless here, particularly in the air.Milos Kerkez (8/10):Had already threatened on a couple of occasions himself before providing a wonderful cross for Jones to break the deadlock. A second assist in three games for a player who's also now defending so much better than he was at the start of the season.Dominik Szoboszlai (8/10):The multi-talented Hungarian started in a deeper role in midfield but it doesn't really matter where you play him, he impacts the game and his fierce first-time finish was just reward for another excellent all-round display. Salah's right when he says Szoboszlai one of the best players in the world right now.Alexis Mac Allister (7/10):After a very positive performance against Sunderland, the Argentina produced another energetic display here, against a decent Brighton midfield. Won duels all over the field and one ball he played through for Kerkez from inside his own half was absolutely sensational.Florian Wirtz (5/10):Pressed well at times but Liverpool's creative hub was unusually quiet and, one jinking run aside, he was unable to affect the game in any way, shape or form. On this evidence, he'll benefit from a week's rest after his recent exploits.Mohamed Salah (8/10):The belated return of the king? Showed flashes of his former self during the first half, most notably when his pace got him a sight of goal only to see his stabbed effort saved by Jason Steele, before really shining in the second half. Set up Szoboszlai's goal with the loveliest of lay-offs but it was the way in which he won and converted his penalty that suggested Salah's got his groove back. Fully deserved the standing ovation Anfield afforded him when he came off in the 77th minute.Federico Chiesa (5/10):Always impossible to fault his effort, while he did his best to link the play, he's not a centre-forward - and never has been - so it feels unfair that most of his appearances come as a makeshift No.9.Cody Gakpo (6/10):Had a header (rightly) disallowed for offside but while he remains guilty of taking the wrong option on too many occasions, he deserves credit for playing his part in the second goal with a delightful cross-field ball to Salah. Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reportingJoe Gomez (6/10):A welcome return from his latest injury. Gomez took over at right-back from Jones after coming on for the final 20 minutes and did a decent job.Hugo Ekitike (N/A):Took over up top from Chiesa for the final 15 minutes but didn't get a sniff of goal.Rio Ngumoha (N/A):The teenager replaced Salah late on and was so unlucky to see a fantastic finish chalked off for a contentious offside call.Calvin Ramsay (N/A):The right-back was thrown on in the dying minutes.Trey Nyoni (N/A):The teenage midfielder came on alongside Ramsay.Arne Slot (7/10):Picked a very, very strong side and, after a pretty tame first half, saw his side ultimately cruise to a comfortable and morale-boosting win. The FA Cup might yet help Slot salvage this season - especially if Salah can build on this performance.