(VIDEO) Liverpool Remains Unstoppable, Putting Emery in Crisis
El partido de este sábado empezó con una ovación en Anfield tras la derrota del Manchester City contra el Brighton & Hove Albion. El anuncio se dio por el sonido local, y la afición celebró, consciente de que una victoria los alejaba aún más del equipo de Pep Guardiola en la pelea por el título.
Arne Slot's Liverpool, which has won 15 of its first 17 games this season and holds a five-point lead over Manchester City, has put Unai Emery in a difficult position, as his team has now gone five games without a win (2-0).
The 'Reds', who have achieved the best season start in English football history, took the victory at Anfield with goals from Darwin Núñez and Mohamed Salah, extending Aston Villa's losing streak to four consecutive games.
Saturday's match began with an ovation at Anfield following Manchester City's defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion. The announcement echoed over the stadium speakers, and the crowd cheered, knowing a Liverpool win would widen the gap in their title race against Pep Guardiola’s side.
The rivalry between these teams has deep roots, as Liverpool has won just one league title during Jürgen Klopp's era, with City claiming the rest. Another major challenge for the 'Reds' is Real Madrid, who has knocked them out of European competitions four times in the last decade, though that’s a story for another twenty days from now.
Against Villa, Liverpool struck first, showing their pace on the counterattack. Following a Villa corner, a quick break saw Salah charge forward, only to be taken down by Leon Bailey. Bailey could have faced a red card, but the ball fell to Darwin Núñez, who skipped past 'Dibu' Martínez and lobbed the ball over the Argentine goalkeeper.
Núñez, who dedicated his goal to his upcoming child, came close to scoring twice more but missed a one-on-one chance in another counterattack and sent a header wide in the second half.
The bad news for Liverpool was Trent Alexander-Arnold’s injury, who left after 25 minutes with a hamstring issue.
Despite wasting several opportunities and nearly conceding a draw, thanks to Kelleher’s excellent performance – making Alisson Becker’s absence less noticeable – Liverpool didn't secure the win until the 84th minute. In another counter, Salah waited for 'Dibu' to commit and chipped the ball over him for the second goal.
At the other end, Pau Torres called for a penalty after being stepped on, but neither the referee nor VAR saw any foul. With Salah's goal, the game was effectively over at Anfield. Liverpool now has 28 of a possible 33 points and leads the league by five points over City, while Aston Villa sits in eighth place with 18 points, just one point off the Champions League spots.
