A double from Mohamed Salah was not enough for Liverpool as Aston Villa hammered them 7-2 for a stunning Premier League victory over their illustrious opponent on Sunday.
The Egypt international was afforded his fourth league appearance in the encounter and gave a good account of himself despite his side’s thrashing by Dean Smith’s men.
Salah’s fine left-foot finish seemed to get Liverpool back in the game in the 33rd minute, but John McGinn’s deflected strike two minutes later restored Villa’s two-goal advantage.
Watkins completed his hat-trick inside 39 minutes, with former Everton midfielder Ross Barkley -- making his debut after joining Villa on loan -- making it five, 10 minutes into the second half.
Salah did give Liverpool hope on the hour mark, before a late double from Jack Grealish completed a remarkable victory for the team who just avoided relegation last season.
He has now scored against 25 of the 26 clubs he has appeared against in the Premier League following his strike against Aston Villa on Sunday.
Salah played the entire duration of the game but his effort was not enough to help the Anfield outfit avoid the heavy defeat.
A sensational first-half hat-trick from Ollie Watkins helped Aston Villa end the champions’ 100% start to the season in extraordinary fashion.
