Revealed: Suarez the star in highest rated Liverpool team of the decade

We begin our series of team of the decades with a look at Premier League leaders and Champions of Europe Liverpool whose side is, unsurprisingly, dominated by current incumbents of the famous red shirt.

We're taking in WhoScored.com ratings* from league and Champions League appearances, with a minimum of 70 - essentially - ensuring at least two full seasons' service over the past ten years - set as a requirement. For that reason there's no place for Alisson in our XI, with a former favourite earning the spot between the sticks.

Goalkeeper: Pepe Reina (121 apps) - 6.68

While much of Reina's spell at Anfield came before the turn of the decade the Spaniard held the number one jersey for the first three and a half years of the last ten. In that time he made 121 appearances in the Premier League, producing exactly 300 saves.

The Spain international kept 50 clean sheets in said outings, conceding just over a goal per game (1.02), whilst winning the League Cup in 2012.

Right-back: Trent Alexander-Arnold (97 apps / 4 goals) - 7.13

At the age of just 21, Alexander-Arnold is one three matches away from 100 appearances across the league and Champions League alone for his new club, with Reds fans hoping the academy graduate follows in the footsteps of Steven Gerrard as a one-club man. The right-back is certainly a future captain in the making and already an absolutely pivotal player in one of the greatest teams in the club's illustrious history.

In his aforementioned 97 outings the youngster has scored four goals and laid on an excellent 24 for teammates, whilst averaging 2.1 tackles per 90 minutes. Having ended this decade a Champions League winner, he's on course to start the next as a Premier League winner too.

Centre-back: Virgil van Dijk (92 apps / 9 goals) - 7.31

Liverpool have had some sensational centre-backs over the years but many would attest that the Dutchman is their best ever. Narrowly missing out on the Ballon d'Or this year to the incomparable Lionel Messi, Van Dijk has transformed this Liverpool team into one of the strongest in world football.

A colossus at the back whose physicality is perhaps without peer in the game right now, since arriving at Anfield he's been dominant defensively both in the air and on the deck. With a happy habit of finding the net too, scoring nine times in 92 appearances, Van Dijk will go down as a club legend.

Centre-back: Joel Matip (98 apps / 4 goals) - 7.06

Whilst constantly performing in Virgil van Dijk's shadow, Matip has become an increasingly important player under Jurgen Klopp since his arrival in 2016 and endured a fine start to the current campaign prior to injury. Extremely confident from the ball and willing to step out from the back, he often initiates the vertical momentum to Liverpool's possession play and has proven to be an extremely shrewd free transfer.

Left-back: Andrew Robertson (98 apps / 3 goals) - 7.03

Having signed from relegated Hull in the summer of 2017, Robertson took time to establish himself as a first team regular at Liverpool but is now one of the most assured players of a starting berth in the squad. Like Alexander-Arnold on the opposite side of the back four he plays a crucial role in the attacking phase of play without shirking his defensive responsibilities.

In 98 league and Champions League appearances he has three goals and an excellent 23 assists, whilst averaging 2 tackles per 90 minutes.

Right-wing: Mohamed Salah (118 apps / 80 goals) - 7.56

While Salah had restored his reputation during a spell in Italy, when Liverpool splashed the cash to sign the Egyptian many were wary of his failure to break into the team at Chelsea. Two and a half years on since his 2017 arrival at Anfield and the £38m fee spent to bring Salah back to England looks like peanuts.

A back-to-back Golden Boot winner, albeit sharing the award last season, Salah's Reds record across the league and Champions League reads 118 appearances, 80 goals and 30 assists.

Centre midfield: Philippe Coutinho (162 apps / 46 goals) - 7.45

When Coutinho arrived at Anfield for a modest fee in the region of £12m it looked like a decent price but few could predict quite the bargain that would prove to be. Five years later the club made a profit of around £120m on the Brazilian, and the club have only improved since.

The playmaker's influence on the team cannot be overstated though, and he improved year-on-year to a point where he was averaging close to a goal or assist in every game. Overall in 162 league and Champions League appearances for Liverpool Coutinho scored 46 times - inculding some truly memorable strikes - whilst registering 37 assists.

Centre midfield: Steven Gerrard (160 apps / 46 goals) - 7.40

Though much of Gerrard's best football pre-dated the current decade, the talismanic Liverpool captain continued to play a prominent role in the team up until his departure for the US in 2015. Injuries between 2010 and 2012 restricted his involvement but the England international still made 160 appearances for the club in the league and Champions League, scoring 46 times and registering 32 assists.

Strong at breaking up play - averaging 2.4 tackles per 90 - as well as dictating it (2.3 key passes per 90), Gerrard won nine trophies in his time at Liverpool but only one in this decade (2011/12 League Cup).

Left-wing: Sadio Mane (137 apps / 70 goals) - 7.47

Having been overshadowed by Mo Salah in the Egyptian's first season at Anfield, Mane has proven since the start of last season that he is just as crucial, if not more so to Liverpool's attack. In 137 league and Champions League appearances since signing from Southampton in 2016 the Senegalese star has scored 70 goals from 319 shots, equating to an impressive 22 per cent conversion rate, while registering 20 assists.

In a year in which he became a Champions League winner, the 27-year-old placed fourth in the 2019 Ballon d'Or.

Striker: Luis Suarez (110 apps / 69 goals) - 7.87

Signing for the club in January 2011 from Ajax, Suarez's three and a half years at Anfield were crammed with moments of sheer genius and extreme controversy. A hate figure of opposing fans, the Uruguayan was adored on the Kop and one couldn't doubt his exceptional quality on the pitch, with his time at Anfield culminating with the 2013/14 PFA Player of the Year award.

In said final season at Liverpool he became only the seventh player in Premier League history to reach 30 goals, netting 69 times and registering 23 assists in 110 appearances across the league and Champions League.

Striker: Roberto Firmino (184 apps / 66 goals) - 7.35

He may not boast the scoring return of his current attacking teammates in Mo Salah and Sadio Mane but Firmino is a fan favourite for a reason. A player of exceptional quality as well as work ethic, he knits up play in Jurgen Klopp's system expertly.

The Brazilian, who arrived from Hoffenheim in 2015, has scored 66 goals in 184 league and Champions League appearances, while a tally of 42 assists across the two tournaments is the most of any Liverpool player this decade.

Notable omissions...

Raheem Sterling (7.19) - The winger had a hand in 33 goals in 101 appearances over the league and Champions League, averaging 3.2 dribbles per 90 minutes.

Jordan Henderson (6.96) - With 84 more appearances than any other Liverpool player over the last decade, Henderson has had a hand in 59 goals across the two tournaments, averaging 2.4 tackles per 90.

Martin Skrtel (7.05) - Narrowly missing out to Matip in the XI, Skrtel made 200 league and Champions League appearances over the decade and made a habit of scoring at both ends!