Liverpool vs Tottenham Hotspur. Premier League.
AnfieldAttendance60,075.
Report and free match highlights as Mohamed Salah's goal helps Liverpool beat Tottenham 4-2 at Anfield; Andrew Robertson, Cody Gakpo and Harvey Elliott were also on target before Richarlison and Heung-Min Son reduced the deficit
Monday 6 May 2024 07:15, UK
Liverpool beat Tottenham 4-2 at Anfield to condemn the visitors to a fourth consecutive loss which leaves their hopes of Champions League qualification hanging by a thread.
The Reds were rampant for the opening hour, with Mohamed Salah, back in the side following his touchline spat with Jurgen Klopp against West Ham, heading them in front early on before Andrew Robertson added a second on the stroke of half-time.
Cody Gakpo then nodded Liverpool's third after the break before Harvey Elliott punished more poor Tottenham defending with a stunning fourth from long range soon afterwards.
Ange Postecoglou's side rallied to halve the deficit thanks to goals from substitute Richarlison and Heung-Min Son.
But in the end it was another painful afternoon for Spurs, who have lost four Premier League games in a row for the first time in 20 years and remain seven points behind fourth-placed Aston Villa with only three games left to play.
For Liverpool, out of the title race in third place, the result at least raises hopes of a positive finish to Klopp's final campaign in charge.
Salah's return to the Liverpool team was the dominant talking point ahead of kick-off and the Egyptian was in the thick of the action from the start, hitting the bar with a cross-shot and seeing a low effort repelled by Guglielmo Vicario before he scored the opener.
His header, from Cody Gakpo's cross, was well-taken at the far post but it was poor from Tottenham's perspective, with makeshift left-back Emerson Royal leaving him unmarked.
Liverpool continued to target the Brazilian, with Salah receiving plenty of support from Trent Alexander-Arnold and Elliott. Their second goal, after Spurs had survived a succession of other Liverpool chances, came from another attack down that side.
Robertson cleverly directed Alexander-Arnold's cross into the path of Salah initially, and when the winger's low, first-time effort was parried by Vicario, the left-back was on hand to convert the rebound, with the hapless Emerson playing him onside.
Tottenham defenders Emerson and Cristian Romero had to be separated by Vicario as tensions threatened to boil over as they walked off at the interval, and Spurs continued to collapse in the second half.
Emerson was partly at fault again as the excellent Elliot curled a stunning long-range effort into the top corner from 25 yards out soon after crossing for Gakpo to head the third.
It looked like a miserable afternoon could get even worse for Tottenham at that point as Liverpool continued to enjoy Klopp's penultimate home game as manager, but the visitors made the scoreline respectable with two goals in the space of five minutes.
Richarlison scored the first, converting from Brennan Johnson's low cross, before teeing up Heung-Min Son to mark his 300th Premier League appearance with a goal in a fifth consecutive Premier League game against Liverpool.
Those strikes added intrigue to the closing stages. Liverpool were indebted to substitute Joe Gomez for making a crucial, goal-line clearance to prevent Johnson from adding a Spurs third, but, that incident aside, the hosts looked the more likely scorers.
Salah had a goal chalked off for offside, substitutes Darwin Nunez and Dominik Szoboszlai spurned good chances, and Alexander-Arnold saw an audacious long-range effort drop just over the bar, but four goals were more than enough in the end.
Liverpool move to 78 points in third, four behind second-placed Manchester City, while Tottenham are now looking over their shoulders, only four points ahead of sixth-placed Newcastle with three games still to play.
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp to Sky Sports:
"We are outstanding until we are not.
"It was a really good game. Tottenham can put pressure on Aston Villa again for the Champions League. In high performance things, you need a spark. I would say three points is enough and the boys thought that.
"Anfield was a special place today. We were 4-0 up, I made the changes and we lost organisation. Tottenham showed how good they could be. I was happy with the performance.
"We were good in pretty much all areas offensively. The passes were good. So many things were good. We stayed calm. As long as they don't break the lines then it's fine, let them pass. I liked our game a lot. The goals were outstanding."
On Mohamed Salah's performance: "Mo was outstanding, he played a really good game. His side with Harvey was good. I was pleased for him.
"None of the boys want to play not great, why would they? Mo showed what he is capable of.
"You do it when you do it and if you miss it, then you miss it. If we win all three then we can achieve the fifth highest points tally of Liverpool.
Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou to Sky Sports:
"Obviously a hugely disappointing outcome for us but at least we were more like ourselves today in terms of our football.
Our last two away games at Newcastle and Chelsea, apart from the results which weren't great either, we just didn't try and play our football.
"I thought today, even in the first half, some of our football, our pressing was back to where it should be."
On whether Spurs have a confidence problem: "Maybe in the front third there is.
"It probably is a bit of a lack of confidence but again that's something the guys have to work through.
"You have to find a way to overcome that because ultimately if you don't put pressure on the opposition in the front third after you've worked your way up there, they're going to get comfortable with their position."
Liverpool feature on Monday Night Football at Aston Villa on May 13, live on Sky Sports. Kick-off 8pm. Jurgen Klopp's final match in charge comes at Anfield against Wolves on Sunday May 19, kick-off 4pm.
Tottenham have three matches left to confirm European football for next season. They host Burnley on Saturday May 11 at 3pm before title-chasing Manchester City visit on Tuesday May 14, live on Sky Sports. Kick-off 8pm. Spurs finish the season at Sheffield United on May 19, kick-off 4pm.
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