LIVERPOOL, England -- Liverpool moved six points clear at the top of the Premier League thanks to a comfortable 4-0 win over Newcastle United and a Christmas gift from Leicester City on Wednesday. Dejan Lovren, Mohamed Salah, Xherdan Shaqiri and Fabinho were on the score sheet at Anfield on a day when title rivals Manchester City were beaten at the King Power Stadium.

Positives
Liverpool's title charge is gathering momentum with every passing week. Reigning champions Man City are no longer formidable, while Liverpool are the only professional team in Britain to be unbeaten this season. There are no signs of complacency from the league leaders at the halfway stage of the season. Meanwhile, Fabinho grabbing his first goal in a Liverpool shirt will be another confidence booster for the summer signing.

Negatives
Hard to think of anything that went wrong in a match Liverpool easily won to extend their lead at the summit.

Manager rating out of 10
7 -- This wasn't Liverpool's best or most controlled performance of the season, but they put four past an opponent without breaking much of a sweat in the midst of a packed scheduled.

Player ratings: (1-10; 10=best. Players introduced after 70 minutes get no rating)
GK Alisson, 7 -- A spectator for nearly all of the game. He provided some good distribution and was alert off his line in the rare occasions the ball got near Liverpool's penalty area.

DF Trent Alexander-Arnold, 7 -- Back from a foot injury, but showed no signs of rustiness. His delivery was particularly impressive here, with a perfect assist for Xherdan Shaqiri's goal.

DF Dejan Lovren, 8 -- A fine defensive display that will rightly be overshadowed by a superb goal to give Liverpool the lead. What a strike from the centre-half, who has always held the belief he can score those types of goals.

DF Virgil van Dijk, 7 -- Despite being perfectly fine, Van Dijk has, for once, been overshadowed by his defensive partner.

DF Andrew Robertson, 7 -- Like Alexander-Arnold, Robertson's delivery was threatening. Incredibly energetic as always and was given a breather with eight minutes left.

MF Georginio Wijnaldum, 6 -- Roundly booed by the supporters of his former club for 62 minutes. Struggled in the first half and has had much better games this season.

MF Jordan Henderson, 8 -- An impressive performance from the captain. Often criticised for his attacking contributions, Henderson continually helped Liverpool get on the front foot.

FW Xherdan Shaqiri, 7 -- This was just the third time he has completed 90 minutes for Liverpool in the league. Slotted home in the 79th minute to cap off a solid outing.

FW Mohamed Salah, 7 -- A constant irritation for Newcastle's back five. He won Liverpool a penalty early in the second half and then took responsibility to net his 15th goal of the season.

FW Roberto Firmino, 6 -- Created a lot of space for himself, but looked quite sluggish and was taken off early.

FW Sadio Mane, 7 -- Drifting centrally from the right-hand side, the speedster did everything but score. Unlucky in a number of situations, but this was a fine display.

Substitutes
MF Fabinho, 8 -- Headed in from a corner five minutes from time. The Brazilian looks like he's going to have a big impact in the second half of the season.

FW Daniel Sturridge, 6 -- Displayed some nifty footwork.

DF Nathaniel Clyne, N/R -- Played at left-back. Was this a test to see if he's a viable option there for the remainder of the campaign?