March 05, (THEWILL) – After a dramatic 1-0 victory over West Ham at Anfield, Liverpool closed the deficit on Premier League leaders Manchester City to three points.
Although the Reds ripped the Hammers open at will early on and Saturday’s hosts thought they were in for a comfortable evening, David Moyes’ side fought back and made it a close affair at Anfield.
Within the opening minute, the Reds should have seized the lead. West Ham’s Nikola Vlasic was ruled offside, and Trent Alexander-Arnold immediately played the following free-kick long and into the path of Mohamed Salah, who was denied by Lukasz Fabianski.
Then, Luis Diaz’s opening strike slapped Craig Dawson square in the face as Jurgen Klopp’s side continued to create early pressure, with Salah pulling another chance wide.
Michail Antonio wriggled away from Ibrahima Konate and Virgil van Dijk on two occasions to fire at goal, with two strikes stinging Alisson’s palms in the opening exchanges to warn the hosts of the danger lurking around.
After a protracted VAR check for offside against Sadio Mane, Liverpool seized the lead with 27 minutes on the clock when Alexander-Arnold’s strike deflected into the path of the Senegalese, who tapped home.
A fantastic run right through the middle of West Ham’s midfield and defence, earned Diaz a cutting down by Kurt Zouma, and Alexander-Arnold nearly struck the top corner with the resulting free-kick.
West Ham escaped a goalmouth scramble as Alexander-Arnold attempted to re-tee up Salah and Diaz, but came close to equalising when Ben Johnson sent Pablo Fornals through on goal. The Spaniard’s lob over Alisson was cleared off the line by England’s right-back, and the visitors failed to score from the ensuing 18-yard-box mayhem.
In a cagey second half, Diaz came close to picking out the far corner on the break, before two tame Salah attempts trickled into Fabianski’s grasp after the hour mark. Yet, West Ham should have equalised when Tomas Soucek found Manuel Lanzini, who blasted over from just over six yards out.
Substitute Mark Noble then passed Antonio through, but Naby Keita recovered in time to deny the Jamaican international after playing him onside.
It was all Liverpool could do to hang on to a crucial three points in the title chase despite a late flurry of West Ham chances.
It is a victory that once again reduces Manchester City’s Premier League advantage to just three points. Klopp’s side notched up 22 shots in this game and are capable of keeping up with City’s tempo. For the time being, West Ham remain in fifth place. Many of the teams below them, on the other hand, have games in hand, and Bowen’s injury, if serious, might further deplete an already-weak squad.
The Reds have the boost of confidence that such a victory brings going into the second leg of their Champions League encounter with Inter next week.
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.
