Saturday, May 8, 2021 at 11:05 PM• Jeroen van Poppel

Liverpool beat Southampton at home on Saturday evening. Jürgen Klopp’s team took the lead in the first half thanks to Sadio Mané and decided the match in the ninetieth minute via Thiago Alcántara: 2-0. Liverpool had failed to keep a clean sheet at Anfield for eight consecutive league games, ending the club’s worst Premier League home series since 1990. The Reds rise to sixth place and are still fully competing for a Champions League ticket.

Liverpool started out with clear attacking intentions and were soon given opportunities. Fraser Forster had a save on an attempt by Mohamed Salah from a difficult angle, while Diogo Jota was also unable to pass the Southampton goalkeeper after a nice solo. Georginio Wijnaldum headed the crossbar from a corner. Every now and then, Liverpool turned out to be vulnerable on the counter. For example, Alisson Becker had to prevent the free Che Adams from scoring.

Made on the opposite side the Reds the opening goal. Salah hurled the ball high in front of the goal from the right, after which Sadio Mané won the header game: 1-0. Nathan Redmond got a shot at the equalizer just before half time, but the attacker aimed just wide. After the break, Liverpool thoughtfully looked for the liberating second goal, but that did not yield any real chances.

Southampton therefore stayed alive and got a new opportunity in the seventieth minute. Ibrahima Diallo saw his shot from the edge of the penalty area turned by Alisson. A little later, the Liverpool goalie just pushed the ball into Adams’s feet, who seemed to get an unmissable opportunity. However, the shot was blocked by Liverpool. On the other side, Salah offered a ticker to Jota, who, however, hit the ball badly. Mane did hit, but was called back for offside. Thiago decided the game in the ninetieth minute by putting the ball in from the edge of the penalty area: 2-0.