For Jurgen Klopp and the Liverpool fans, their opening day 4-0 hammering of West Ham United was the perfect way to see in the new season.
Goals from Mohamed Salah, Daniel Sturridge and a Sadio Mane brace either side of half-time secured the Reds' convincing victory at Anfield, while new signings Naby Keita and Alisson Becker - although the latter was rarely called upon - looked assured in their new surroundings.
Since making his Liverpool debut, no player has kept more clean sheets in the Premier League than Virgil van Dijk.
— bet365 (@bet365) August 12, 2018
The Reds haven't conceded a league goal at Anfield since February.
Rock. pic.twitter.com/ww5T7tSgpd
However, the costly summer imports were not the only unfamiliar faces to appear in red on Sunday, with £13m signing Xherdan Shaqiri also grabbing his first taste of competitive Liverpool football.
And although the 26-year-old managed to record only the final eight minutes, the Switzerland international hit the headlines on Twitter for his 'son-like' look towards boss Jurgen Klopp moments before taking the field.
Obviously, this caught the eye of many on the social network, and the attacker's captured moment quickly reached meme-like status.
Get someone who looks at you like Shaqiri looks at Klopp 😍😂 pic.twitter.com/LYJFRx2Wp9
— Dävíd 🇪🇺🎶 (@VivaLaVidavid) August 12, 2018
I think Shaqiri joined Liverpool just to get him some Klopp hugs 😂 #LFC
— 𝕊𝕔𝕙𝕣𝕒𝕞 (@schram) August 12, 2018
Every LFC player can’t wait for their Klopp hug haha especially Shaqiri😂😂😂 looks at him like a father #LFC #LiverpoolFC #LIVWHA #jurgenklopp #shaqiri pic.twitter.com/flvRrGWPj3
— Ken Akande (@kennyakande26) August 12, 2018
The way shaqiri looks at Klopp hahahaha
— Charlie Cashman (@CharlieCashman) August 12, 2018
It was evident in pre-season that Shaqiri, unlike his chastise-worthy performances at Stoke City last season, was keen to make an impact at his new club - with his overhead kick against Manchester United in America a moment of particular note.
However, the German's claims of his player's commitment, describing it as "not normal", certainly turned a few heads - for the right reasons.
Shaqiri hugging Klopp like he'll never see him again. Haha.
— DaveOCKOP (@DaveOCKOP) August 12, 2018
“That's not normal after four days in the club - adapting that well to the style of play,” Klopp said following Shaqiri’s overhead kick vs United, as quoted by Goal.
“We wanted to help him a little bit with the position so that it's not too complicated, gave him a lot of freedom, offensively playing natural, plus offering runs in behind, which is what he did.
“When he signed for the club, he wanted to start training with us straight away, even though he had not had a holiday after the World Cup. We had to tell him, no, go away for a break and then come back.”
Shaqiri is going to leave Liverpool a hero in a few years, can sense it.
— DaveOCKOP (@DaveOCKOP) August 7, 2018
It seems then that Liverpool may have snapped up a bargain by landing the out of favour Stoke man over the summer, and with commitment levels of those shared by Klopp, it will not take him long to win over the Anfield crowd - if he has not done so already.