Liverpool made it two wins from two to start the season following a 2-1 victory at Southampton on Saturday.
Former Saints forward Sadio Mane sent Jurgen Klopp's men on their way to three points with a stunning strike in first half stoppage time before Roberto Firmino made it two in the second half. An awful mistake from Adrian gave Danny Ings the chance to make it 2-1 and set up a nervy finale, but the visitors held on.
Liverpool were made to sweat ahead of the game with Adrian suffering an ankle injury after an accidental clash with a fan following his penalty save against Chelsea in the UEFA Super Cup.
He managed to recover in time and was in the thick of the action in the first half, first seeing James Ward-Prowse charge down his kick upfield before making a superb stop to deny Maya Yoshida.
Liverpool's penalty shootout victory over Chelsea in midweek looked like it had taken its toll at times in the first half, with Che Adams going close for Southampton and last season's Champions League winners struggling amid fierce pressure from the home side. Adams was a constant threat for the hosts and should scored at least once in the first half, heading over when unmarked just before the break.
Southampton were made to pay for failing to break the deadlock when Mane put Liverpool in front. Mane collected the ball from James Milner, stepped away from Jan Bednarek and whipped a brilliant curling shot into the far corner of the net.
The goal, Mane's 16th in his last 18 starts, changed the flow of the game with Liverpool more in control in the second half. Mohamed Salah should have made it 2-0 soon after the restart but his effort was too weak to cause Angus Gunn problems.
Firmino then went even closer following good work from Mane but after squandering a simple chance, he made the game safe after putting Liverpool 2-0 up with his 49th Premier League goal 20 minutes from time.
There was still time for Ings to capitalise on a dreadful error from Adrian, in for the injured Alisson, but his 83rd minute strike wasn't enough. Adrian tried to play a clever pass but Ings was on hand to intercept and slide the ball home, setting up an anxious end to the game for Klopp's men.
Ings had a chance to complete a shock comeback in the dying minutes but somehow managed to miss an easy opportunity inside the box, much to Liverpool's relief.
Source: espn.co.uk