Mohamed Salah’s brace was not enough to spare the blushes of his team-mates as Liverpool drew 2-2 away to Brighton on Sunday.
A string of errors allowed Brighton to score twice and frustrate Liverpool as they claimed a 2-2 draw despite Mohamed Salah’s brace on Sunday.
Either side of two goals from the Reds’ talisman, Simon Adingra and Lewis Dunk took advantage of two lapses of concentration to take a point on the south coast.
Here, Express Sport looks at some of the biggest talking points from the match, including a curious trend that Jurgen Klopp will not be too pleased with.
While Salah’s form has not been questioned, he will be relieved to have gotten his first away goals of the season on Sunday afternoon.
The first came after some smart play by Harvey Elliott to dummy the ball after a flowing counter attack, before Salah placed his effort in the far corner to equalise.
It took just a few moments later for Salah to get his second away goal of the season as Dominik Szoboszlai was fouled inside the box, then the Egyptian duly dispatched his effort past Bart Verbruggen. Salah continues to look his consistent best, Klopp instead will stress over other areas of the team.
Two Liverpool stars especially will be disappointed with their roles in goals conceded – Mac Allister, Alisson and Andy Robertson.
Liverpool’s poor start to games continued after the Argentine midfielder was caught on the ball by Adingra who then spotted the Reds’ goalkeeper off his line and managed to curl an effort around Allison to open the scoring.
Robertson’s efforts will also see him questioned after failing to cut out a free-kick as he avoided using his right foot to clear and instead Brighton captain Dunk arrived in the six-yard box to equalise.
The Scottish defender looked to the heavens as his frustration was clear with his mistake, while Klopp will similarly be enraged that two mistakes were punished and cost the Reds two points.
Liverpool fans may feel that they have been on the wrong side of another VAR controversial call, as Pascal Gross escaped a sending off after giving a penalty away just before half-time.
He pulled back Szoboszlai inside the box with the goal at the midfielder’s mercy, but Gross received just a yellow card. He may feel that the ‘double jeopardy’ rule played a role, but IFAB rules state that if he made no attempt to play the ball then a red should have been brandished.
The rules state: “Where a player commits an offence against an opponent within their own penalty area which denies an opponent an obvious goal-scoring opportunity and the referee awards a penalty kick, the offender is cautioned if the offence was an attempt to play the ball or a challenge for the ball; in all other circumstances (e.g. holding, pulling, pushing, no possibility to play the ball etc.), the offending player must be sent off.”
Once again Liverpool conceded the first goal of the game through an avoidable error, something that has been occurring far too often for Klopp’s liking this season.
Today’s game marked the seventh time in all competitions this season that Liverpool’s opponents have scored the opening goal, with only Tottenham and Brighton avoiding a Reds comeback.
While Klopp will be proud of his side’s fighting spirit before Dunk’s finish, there will be concerns over whether this worrying trend can continue and ultimately if the opposition is scoring at least once then there is a smaller chance of victory.
Despite another comeback to earn a point, Klopp and his side must stress the importance of staying secure in the opening stages of games.
Today saw Klopp celebrate eight years at Liverpool as he has been a head coach that has transformed the club from top to bottom. His passion on the sidelines was evident once again, showcasing that despite reaching nearly a decade in charge he has not lost that spark.
This new version of Liverpool have at times looked as imperious as ever, despite some small issues Klopp will feel that his side are capable of winning silverware and competing at the top of the Premier League table – as he goes in search of a second title in his time at the club.
Liverpool icon Jamie Carragher heralded Klopp before the match. “He has completely turned the club around,” he told Sky Sports. “Liverpool were not even a Champions League club.
“He turned that round so Liverpool were challenging for the Premier League and Champions League every season and it feels like off the back of last season, that not happening and building again, it’s been a promising start this season and it looks like certainly in the first few weeks that this team he is building can hopefully go on to achieve what his previous teams have done.”
