Roberto Firmino on Thursday ended Liverpool’s 483-minute goal drought in the English Premier League to set the champions on their way to a 3-1 win over Tottenham Hotspur and revive their faltering title defense.
Trent Alexander-Arnold and Sadio Mane also netted as Liverpool ended a five-game winless run in a league they dominated so resoundingly last season.
“We were really up for the game, everyone was at it,” rightback Alexander-Arnold said. “No one put too much of a foot wrong and it was an unbelievable performance from the lads.”
Photo: Reuters
The victory, which lifts Liverpool to fourth place, started with the video assistant referee ruling out an opener for Spurs when Son Heung-min was adjudged to be offside.
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg reduced the deficit to 2-1 with a powerful strike shortly after Alexander-Arnold scored at the start of the second half, but the Liverpool rightback set up Mane for the third that sealed the win.
While Liverpool moved within four points of leaders Manchester City, Jose Mourinho’s Tottenham are eight points adrift in sixth place after their first defeat of the calender year, albeit with a game in hand.
Mourinho was also facing an anxious wait to discover the extent of Harry Kane’s injury after the striker twice went down in the first half clutching his left ankle, before being replaced at the interval.
“He is injured in both ankles,” Mourinho said. “He said to compete with one pain he probably could, but both — it was very painful and very sore, and he couldn’t. He just couldn’t. He is a guy with a good sacrifice spirit, he can fight against pain, but it was difficult for him.”
There are also problems at the back for the north London side, who are in danger of failing to qualify for the UEFA Champions League for a second consecutive season after reaching the final in 2018-2019 — before losing to Liverpool.
Liverpool were forced to play midfielder Jordan Henderson at centerback due to injuries and also lost Joel Matip at halftime with ankle-ligament damage, but it was Tottenham’s back three who looked more fragile.
“We were punished by our individual mistakes,” Mourinho said. “It’s nothing new for us.”
How different the game might have been had Son not been marginally offside when he was released by Kane early on.
Liverpool were more threatening going forward after that, with Mane testing Hugo Lloris with tame shots, before setting up the opener in the fourth minute of stoppage-time at the end of the first half.
Firmino tapped in after Mane passed across the face of goal, scoring Liverpool’s first league goal since Dec. 27 last year.
It was clear from Mourinho’s post-match comments that it was a tense atmosphere in the dressing room at halftime.
“It is the mood of a team that is difficult to accept that you are losing,” Mourinho said. “It’s a mood where people are not happy, but then we have to move on.”
Liverpool doubled their lead two minutes into the second half when Lloris spilled Mane’s shot into the path of Alexander-Arnold.
Tottenham threatened an immediate comeback when Hojbjerg powered in a shot from outside the penalty area.
There was another break for Tottenham when Mohamed Salah’s goal was ruled out because Firmino was adjudged to have handled in the buildup, despite Eric Dier grappling with the Brazilian, but Liverpool restored their two-goal cushion in the 65th minute when Alexander-Arnold’s cross came off Joe Rodon and fell for Mane to strike into the roof of the net.
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