Liverpool FC did not let an early goal against Leicester City bother them and won 3-1 in the end. This means that the Reds are now at least six points ahead at the top of the table.
Chelsea’s 2-1 defeat to Fulham meant that Liverpool had the chance to pull away from the top of the table to at least seven points overnight at the end of Boxing Day. A win was a certainty against Leicester City, who had only won one of their previous ten games.
Ayew shocks the Reds early
Therefore, the Reds, who started with Darwin and Jones instead of Luis Diaz and Szoboszlai, as they did in the 6-3 win at Tottenham, began as expected, dominating and playing in the opposing half. However, the Foxes scored the first goal with their first attacking move: Mavididi set up Ayew, who turned past Robertson and shot low into the left corner (6′).
It took a few minutes for Arne Slot’s team to shake off the shock, during which they survived a spirited spell from Leicester. After about 20 minutes, however, the Reds stepped up the pressure. Liverpool produced a power play, pinning the visitors back at their own box for spells.
Gakpo scores the overdue equalizer
So scoring chances were only a matter of time: Robertson (26th) and Salah (45th) both hit the woodwork and Gakpo spurned a chance when through on Stolarczyk, so it still looked like the underdogs would take the lead at half-time. Shortly before the break, Gakpo moved into the inside lane and curled the ball into the right corner to make it 1-1 (45+1).
As in the first half, the Reds came out of the locker room with pressure. This time, however, the Slot team was immediately rewarded: a nice combination found Jones, who pushed the ball over the line from a central position to take the lead (49′).
Liverpool had everything under control in the aftermath. Although the hosts no longer appeared as regularly dangerous in front of goal as they did in the first half, they still kept on making their presence felt: Darwin was stopped by Stolarczyk in the 62nd minute. Gakpo’s goal did not count due to Darwin’s extremely narrow passive offside position.
Salah makes the decision against the harmless Foxes
Because the Foxes did not appear in the final third at all in the second 45 minutes, it did not get dangerous at all despite the Reds’ narrow lead. The LFC left no doubt about the home win – and made the decision in the final phase: Salah penetrated the box on the right and buried the ball in the left corner in the 82nd minute to make the final score 3:1.
Liverpool extend their lead at the top of the table to at least six points if Arsenal manage to move into second place when they play Ipswich Town on Friday evening (9:15 p.m.). On Sunday (6:15 p.m.), the slot eleven will be guests at West Ham. Leicester will play at home against Manchester City on the same day at 3:30 p.m.