Two goals in the opening nine minutes by Liverpool striker Alexander Isak secures the Merseysiders first win of the season

Two goals by Alexander Isak in the opening nine minutes secured a 2-0 victory for Liverpool against Ipswich Town, at Portman Road.

It was The Reds first win of the season and they displayed their superior quality by dominating the opening half with their slick and incisive play constantly putting the Town defence under pressure.

Ipswich had to wait until the 30th minute before they troubled The Reds goalkeeper Alisson Becker but the visitors showed their class throughout with a dominant performance.

Leif Davis conceded a corner in the first minute after he tackled Victor Munoz on the right as the visitors pressed Ipswich back into their own penalty area.

And they deservedly took the lead through Isak after six minutes when he was found just inside the 18 yard area by Cody Gakpo and the Swedish striker squeezed the ball through Kjell Scherpen in the Ipswich goal.

And Isak was on target two minutes later.

It came following a sublime outside of the boot pass by Gakpo. 

Isak twisted round Jacob Greaves in the box and slid a low shot past Scherpen.

And they should have had a third after 20 minutes when Scherpen got down low to divert a shot from outside the penalty area by Dominik Szoboszlai after Abdul Fatawu’s slack pass out of defence fell to Alexis MacAllister who teed up his midfield partner.

Town won their first corner of the game after 26 minutes with the Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson Becker grabbing the ball at the second attempt.

Ipswich had their first chance for a goal in the 30th minute.

Fatawu flicked on a header to Julio Enciso who ran at MacAllister, and the deflected cross was cleared by Liverpool’s centre back Ronald Araujo just ahead of Daizen Maeda in the six yard box.

Enciso and Fatawu linked up well down the right but the former Leicester City winger’s shot went just wide of Becker’s right hand post and the keeper had to get down low to gather the ball into his hands following a speculative shot from Enciso as Town pressed for a goal to help get them back into the game.

In the 64th minute Liverpool’s most recent signing Bradley Barcola, signed from PSG for £106m in the transfer window, was introduced. And two minutes later Town’s deadline day £20m acquisition Zian Flemming came onto the pitch for his debut.

Moments later the video assistant referee was called into action after Davis tackled Szoboszlai in the penalty area but the Liverpool player was adjudged offside in the move which generated a huge cheer from the home supporters among the 30,019 inside the stadium.

Town’s man of the match Exequiel Palacios displayed his midfield composure that had the crowd purring and he found Enciso who in turn passed to substitute Jack Clarke on the overlap but his first time cross through the box failed to find an Ipswich player.

Town’s Issa Diop snuffed out a Liverpool counter attack on half way line and the ball fell to Clarke who looked to bend a trademark shot inside the far post from the edge of the box but it hits Diop and flew narrowly wide of the left post in the dying moments of the game.

And just before the final whistle Enciso fired just wide of the goal.