Roberto Firmino Scores Twice as Liverpool Thrash Swansea City 5-0 at Anfield

Liverpool reclaimed fourth place in the Premier League after thrashing Swansea City 5-0 at Anfield on Boxing Day. Roberto Firmino scored twice, while Philippe Coutinho, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain also found the net.

Tottenham Hotspur, who beat Southampton 5-2 at Wembley Stadium earlier in the day, had temporarily replaced the Reds. However, another masterclass from their gifted attacking players put Liverpool back in control of the race to qualify for next season's UEFA Champions League.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp brought Oxlade-Chamberlain and Georginio Wijnaldum into the starting XI:

Meanwhile, Swansea caretaker boss Leon Britton kept summer signing Roque Mesa at the heart of midfield:

Coutinho needed just six minutes to conjure some typical magic when he curled the ball in from distance. It was a fantastic strike from a player in red-hot form, and OptaJoe detailed how fond the Brazilian is of scoring from distance:

Swansea's response should have been immediate, but Jordan Ayew headed straight at Liverpool goalkeeper Simon Mignolet. The warning was only a brief one, though, as the Reds soon resumed peppering the Swans' goal.

Liverpool's passing combinations at pace were too much for the visitors, who couldn't track Coutinho's movement nor stay with Mohamed Salah's pace. Yet for all their quality and endeavour, the hosts couldn't add to their tally before the break, with Firmino squandering a great chance just before the whistle.

He made amends seven minutes after the restart by meeting Coutinho's delivery from a free-kick.

A two-goal lead was just reward for Liverpool's positive approach, but Swansea again missed the chance to hit back straight away when Leroy Fer couldn't turn in a cross from Wayne Routledge.

Fer would rue the miss, as Alexander-Arnold and Firmino padded the scoreline with a goal apiece in the space of a minute. The sudden scoring rush prompted BBC 5 live Sport's Pat Nevin to applaud the hosts' ruthless streak:

There was still time for former Arsenal ace Oxlade-Chamberlain to make it five courtesy of a deft lob over another ex-Gunner, Swansea goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski. The Polish stopper hadn't done much wrong but still spent most of the day picking the ball out of his own net.

When their attack is in this sort of form, Liverpool are a match for any team in the division. Keeping things secure at the other end consistently while the goals continue to fly in will surely see Klopp's team to a top-four finish.