Mignolet's Stoke saves earn round of applause from Reds
Simon Mignolet was welcomed into the Liverpool dressing room with a round of applause from his teammates after 'brilliant' and 'wonder' saves helped claim a 2-1 win over Stoke City.
Having fallen behind to a Jonathan Walters header on Saturday, Jürgen Klopp’s side fought back to grab all three points in the Premier League clash courtesy of strikes from half-time substitutes Philippe Coutinho and Roberto Firmino.
But the Reds were indebted to the heroics of Mignolet, too.
The Belgian had somehow denied Charlie Adam’s close-range blast with the score still at 1-0, and then, with his team ahead, produced a vital reaction save as Saido Berahino tried to convert Marko Arnautovic’s cross.
Mignolet’s efforts earned an impromptu ovation from the rest of the squad after the final whistle – and Klopp was also eager to express his delight for the goalkeeper.
“He was outstanding,” the manager told Liverpoolfc.com.
“It was well deserved. He’s such a good guy and each person – each footballer – needs situations like this. Usually we should try to avoid situations like this but, again, Stoke are always ready for situations like this, especially the sensational save, the wonder save [from Berahino] after the cross from the left side.
“It was three or four yards out and still a reaction… unbelievable.
“And the other save from Charlie Adam was also brilliant. It was a fight of the whole team, so I thought this was one of the absolute better days from us.”
Watch: Stunning Mignolet saves deny Adam and Berahino