Liverpool will sit second in the Premier League table at Christmas after beating Merseyside rivals Everton 1-0 on Monday night.

Jurgen Klopp’s men left it late to get the better of their neighbours at Goodison Park, with Sadio Mane pouncing after Daniel Sturridge’s effort hit the post to fire into an empty net.

It means that the Reds sit six points behind leaders Chelsea at Christmas, but very much in the hunt for a first ever Premier League title, and first top division crown since 1990.

Klopp’s side have won 11 of their opening 17 Premier League games this season, with wins over Arsenal, Chelsea, and Leicester indicative of their title credentials, yet they really needed that victory over Everton on Monday after a trickier spell which had seen them drop points against Bournemouth and West Ham.

In that time, Antonio Conte’s Chelsea started pulling away from Liverpool at the top, but the Reds will go into their clash with Stoke on December 27 confident of a third straight Premier League win.

And, with Christmas on the horizon, we thought we’d look back at Liverpool’s season thus far, and evaluate who has performed well and who hasn’t been at the races so far this season.

Thus, here is the Liverpool naughty and nice list ahead of Christmas…

NICE – Philippe Coutinho

Liverpool’s standout player over the last 12 months, Philippe Coutinho has been sensational in the first half of this campaign as well.

The Brazilian international has contributed to ten goals that the Reds have scored this season, scoring five and assisting five, which is only two less than Sadio Mane and Adam Lallana, who have both played more than the 24-year-old.

However, it has been a bit noticeable in recent games that Klopp’s men have struggled creatively without Coutinho’s influence and, like the Liverpool fans, Klopp will hope to have the playmaker available for selection shortly, preferably before Mane goes to the African Cup of Nations next month.

Coutinho is one of the best forward players in the division, and his form this season suggests that he will once again be the key for Liverpool as the campaign progresses.

NAUGHTY – Loris Karius

Loris Karius has had a difficult few weeks at Liverpool, which has ended in him losing his place in between the sticks to Simon Mignolet.

Klopp signed the German Under-21 international from Mainz in the summer and set about making him his number one, but the recent games against Bournemouth and West Ham suggest that he still needs more time to adapt and improve in the English game.

Karius fumbled Steve Cook’s long-range strike against the Cherries, which resulted in Nathan Ake’s winner from the rebound, and then he did a poor job in keeping out Dimitri Payet’s free-kick against the Hammers on December 11.

He is still young and is clearly well regarded by his manager, but Karius made one too many errors in recent weeks, and was rightly dropped from the side.

NICE – Adam Lallana

For all of Coutinho’s attacking endeavour, Adam Lallana helps things tick in the midfield.

The England international has been superb for both the Reds and England this season, and it’s no coincidence that both sides play better and have greater control of the middle when he is on the pitch.

Lallana has had a hand in 12 Liverpool goals this season, joint-top of the standings with Sadio Mane, and he also netted for England in their win over Scotland and their draw against Spain last month.

His return from injury at the start of the month was a welcome boost to the Reds, as the 28-year-old has netted three times in his three starts since a groin injury ruled him out for much of November.

Nonetheless, the former Southampton man is back and already up to speed, and is set to be an integral part of the Liverpool midfield for the rest of this season and beyond.

NAUGHTY – Alberto Moreno

Liverpool haven’t had too many poor performers this season, but Alberto Moreno’s first few games of the campaign were right up there among the worst.

The Spanish international started their 4-3 win at Arsenal on the opening day and, although they got the three points, he was at fault for two of the Gunners’ goals that day.

The 24-year-old conceded a penalty against Arsene Wenger’s men, albeit it was missed by Theo Walcott, but Moreno than gave him a chance to atone for that error by giving him possession and then giving him time and space to fire past the helpless Mignolet.

To make matters worse for Moreno, he has since been replaced in the starting line-up by James Milner, who is a midfielder by trade, but nonetheless a better full-back than the Spaniard.

NICE – Sadio Mane

There was a lot of pressure and a fair bit of surprise when Liverpool spent £34 million on Sadio Mane in the summer, but it looks to be money well spent so far.

The Senegalese international netted the winner away at Everton on Monday, which was his eighth Premier League goal of the season, the most of any Liverpool player so far this season.

It’s not just that though, it has been his part in the three-man forward line that has made Liverpool lethal when going forward this season.

Mane has also laid on four assists, two of which have come in his last four games, and he has been the one to rise to the challenge in Coutinho’s absence.

It will be interesting to see how well the Reds deal without him when he goes to the African Cup of Nations next month, as Mane has certainly been one of their stars of the season so far.