May 11, (THEWILL) – Title contenders Liverpool, defeated Aston Villa 2-1 at Villa Park, to pull level on points with English Premier League leaders Manchester City on Tuesday night.
Jurgen Klopp’s side got off to a nail-biting start, going behind after only three minutes with some uncharacteristic atrocious defending doing them no favours.
Joel Matip and Konstantinos Tsimikas collided after Lucas Digne fired a cross into the box. And, although Alisson stopped Douglas Luiz’s header, the Brazilian midfielder reacted fast to give Villa the lead, thumping the ball into an empty net to wild celebrations from the home fans and apprehension for the visiting stand.
However, three minutes later, Liverpool equalised. Klopp’s charges took advantage of Villa’s failure to clear their lines from a free kick and a Virgil van Djik effort saw the ball drop to Matip, who bundled it home from close range.
Sadio Mane headed in Luis Diaz’s cross in the 65th minute to complete Liverpool’s comeback. It was his 15th Premier League goal of the season.
It means Liverpool is the second side in EPL history to have three players score 15 or more goals in the same season as Sadio Mané, Mohamed Salah, and Diogo Jota have done. The first team to do so was Manchester City’s 2013/2014 title-winning squad with Yaya Touré, Sergio Agüero, Edin Dzeko setting the record.
Despite the victory, Klopp’s team is still behind City on goal difference. While the Reds travel to Wembley to face Chelsea, Villa’s final match of the season takes place at home on Sunday against Crystal Palace, another mid-table team.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
