With his first goal and two assists, Conor Bradley put on a standout performance that helped Liverpool defeat Chelsea and hold onto first place in the Premier League.
After Arsenal and Manchester City defeated Nottingham Forest and Burnley, respectively, the Anfield club needed to do the same against the Blues. Jurgen Klopp’s team entered this round of games five points ahead of the competition.
Following a 4-0 victory against Bournemouth in their previous league game.
Darwin Nunez struck the woodwork twice in the first half, for a total of four times, but Diogo Jota persevered admirably to get past defenders and find a space to slide in after Bradley’s assist.
The 20-year-old international from Northern Ireland, who has shown a lot of promise at Liverpool this season, then scored the goal his recent strong performances deserved as he sprinted into the area from the right and curled into the far corner.
After Jota was hauled down, Nunez should have scored from the penalty spot, but the post saved Liverpool from a 3-0 lead at the break.
Darwin Nunez is the first player to ever hit the woodwork four times in a Premier League game (dating back to 2003–04).
With only Alisson to beat after the break, Mykhailo Mudryk squandered a fantastic opportunity to cut the lead in half. He sent the ball high over the bar.
Dominik Szoboszlai made up for Chelsea’s error by heading in Bradley’s cross to score Liverpool’s third goal. Christopher Nkunku gave the visitors a late consolation goal, but Luis Diaz added a fourth goal from close range.
Liverpool put five goals past Norwich to win 5-2 and they could easily have had as many in a dominant first half against Chelsea, with the unfortunate Nunez striking the woodwork three times. But the night belonged to the exceptional Bradley, who once again rose to the occasion despite the presence of fellow full-back Trent Alexander-Arnold on the bench, and he was deservedly given a standing ovation when he went off in the second half. Night of penalty frustration for Chelsea.
Chelsea’s frustrating night with penalties
Under Mauricio Pochettino, Chelsea has made some progress recently. This is especially true at Stamford Bridge, where they haven’t lost in any tournament since October 28.
Their road record is far from perfect, though, as they came into Anfield having dropped five of their previous six road games in all competitions.
Although a win never seemed conceivable, Chelsea will be upset that two penalty calls went against them when they may have led to a closer game.
Virgil van Dijk appeared to clip Nkunku inside the box during the second half, but first, appeals were dismissed after Conor Gallagher went down in the box due to pressure.
Nkunku’s goal was a positive for the visitors on his return from injury but ultimately they were second best as Liverpool put on a display that will make their title rivals stand up and notice.
