Liverpool cruised back into Premier League action with a battling 2-1 home win over rivals Chelsea.
The Reds remain at the top of the EPL table, with a one-point lead on Manchester City, as goals from Mohamed Salah and Curtis Jones edged out the Blues at Anfield.
Salah’s first-half penalty backed up a strong early performance for the hosts but they were made to work for the victory after the restart.
Nicolas Jackson equalised for Enzo Maresca’s side, but Jones’ quickfire response, proved to be the winner for the hosts on Merseyside.
Arne Slot was in no doubt of the grit shown by his players to secure a positive result on their return from the October international break.
The Dutch coach now heads into a key run of games but he claimed a win against Maresca was vital to their momentum.
“Many other games were hard, but this might have been the hardest, maybe because of the amount of quality players they have and the structure they have,” he said, as per BBC Sport.
“We had to fight really hard to get this one over the line. We defended so strongly throughout the whole team. There was an incredible work rate.”
Up next for Liverpool is a midweek UEFA Champions League trip to RB Leipzig on October 23 followed by a crunch EPL home clash against Arsenal next weekend.