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In an entertaining – and somewhat controversial – game in North London tonight, Tottenham Hotspur were defeated 1-3 by Liverpool.
This was Liverpool’s first Premier League win since their 7-0 crushing of Crystal Palace, and it moves them up to fourth place in the table. Tottenham, meanwhile, remain in sixth.
The game got off to a difficult start for Liverpool, or so we thought. Son Heung-min slotted the ball home after just three minutes – only for VAR to somehow chalk the goal off for an incredibly tight offside.
The Reds then opened the scoring on the stroke of half-time, with Roberto Firmino poking in from close range following a Sadio Mane cross.
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The second half saw Spurs fall apart in the opening moments, as some poor goalkeeping from Hugo Lloris saw him push the ball into the path of Trent Alexander-Arnold, who slammed it into the net.
But minutes later, Tottenham pulled a goal back through Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, who smashed a shot in from long range to give his side hope.
Liverpool then thought they’d scored a third through Mo Salah, only for VAR to chalk it off for a Firmino handball in the build-up. However, minutes later, they sealed the deal through Mane after some poor defending from Joe Rodon.
Here are five talking points from Liverpool’s 1-3 win over Tottenham.
#1 Liverpool have their swagger back
After a series of flat performances in the Premier League that saw them take three points from their last five games, Liverpool came back on form with a bang tonight.
Jurgen Klopp’s side showed a sense of urgency they hadn’t in a long time, and while Tottenham defended well in the first half, in the second, they were simply overrun by the Reds.
Roberto Firmino looked back to his best, dropping deep to collect the ball and looking to thread Mo Salah and Sadio Mane through. Meanwhile, Trent Alexander-Arnold’s passing was on point tonight, as it was his long ball that found Mane for Liverpool’s third.
Even the fact that they were once again forced to use a makeshift defense – Jordan Henderson and Joel Matip in the first half, Henderson and Nat Phillips in the second – didn’t seem to affect Liverpool tonight.
The Reds are now four points off the top of the table, although they’ve played a game more than current leaders Manchester City. On this form, it’s easy to imagine them catching Pep Guardiola’s side up.
#2 VAR remains an absolute nonsense
However, it’s definitely fair to say that this game could’ve looked a lot different had VAR not decided to chalk off Son Heung-min’s early goal. In the grand scheme of things, this one looked like one of the worst calls of the season thus far.
The move began with Tanguy Ndombele, who collected the ball from deep and drove forward before finding Son. The Korean passed to Harry Kane, who then threaded a ball through. And as he did at Anfield in December, Son poked past Liverpool keeper Alisson Becker.
However, somehow VAR decided that Son’s ankle was offside when he received the ball from Ndombele – despite Trent Alexander-Arnold seemingly playing him on.
Sure, we know that VAR will be very picky when it comes to offsides, but the truth is that these kinds of calls are ruining football. Nobody seems to be sure how the officials in Stockley Park are working out where to position their offside lines, and every week seems to see a questionable call.
The call to disallow Mo Salah’s second-half goal was also questionable. Roberto Firmino definitely handled the ball in the build-up, but Thiago Alcantara was the player who assisted Salah. Still, Tottenham fans can probably feel more aggrieved tonight.
At any rate, something has to be done about VAR in time for the 2021-22 season. Otherwise, fans are going to begin to abandon the game in droves. Why watch if you can’t celebrate a goal for fear of it being chalked off?
#3 Tottenham were the architects of their own downfall
Liverpool might’ve deserved their win tonight, but it’s safe to say that all three of their goals were basically gift-wrapped by some truly awful defending by Tottenham.
Jose Mourinho’s side looked solid in the first half, until some miscommunication from Eric Dier and Hugo Lloris allowed what was a relatively weak cross from Sadio Mane to find Roberto Firmino for Liverpool’s first goal.
The second was largely caused by more poor goalkeeping from Lloris, who pushed a shot directly into Trent Alexander-Arnold's path.
And finally, the third goal was entirely the fault of Joe Rodon, who allowed a pass from Alexander-Arnold to float past him and directly into the path of Mane.
Considering how solid Tottenham have looked at the back this season, to see them fall apart in this way was a major surprise. Sure, Liverpool put them under plenty of pressure, but they were also allowed far more room than any other side Tottenham have faced this season.
There can be no doubt that Jose Mourinho will be furious about this showing – so perhaps it’s time to re-introduce Toby Alderweireld into the starting XI?
#4 Can Liverpool now catch Manchester City at the top?
After tonight’s result, the top of the Premier League table remains insanely close. Manchester City are at the top with 41 points, while Manchester United sit one behind them on 40. Leicester City are in third with 39, while Liverpool are just behind them with 37.
Even fifth-placed West Ham – on 35 points – and Tottenham, who are on 33, can’t really be discounted, particularly as the latter side have a game in hand on all but City.
Despite this, it still feels like the title race will probably come down to City and Liverpool for the third season in a row. So can Liverpool catch Manchester City?
Well, based on tonight’s result, they’re definitely back on top form. And with Liverpool playing West Ham United and Brighton & Hove Albion next, while City take on Sheffield United and Burnley, it’s easy to imagine both sides taking maximum points going into their big showdown on February 7th.
Essentially then, that clash could well decide who has all of the momentum going into the latter part of the 2020-21 campaign.
Could an outsider still come through? Absolutely, but suddenly, the title is starting to feel eerily familiar. Bring on February 7th.
#5 Tottenham should be very worried about Harry Kane’s injury
Tottenham’s defending was woeful tonight, but their biggest worry should probably center on their star striker Harry Kane.
The England captain was substituted at half-time tonight, and according to Jose Mourinho, both of his ankles are injured, and he may be out for a couple of weeks.
If that’s the case, then judging by tonight, not only is Tottenham’s title challenge over, but their hopes of finishing in the top four could go down the drain as well.
As soon as Kane was substituted, Tottenham looked absolutely impotent in attack and were unable to create any chances in the second half. Sure, they scored through Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, but that was the kind of goal a side can score once in a season, not every week.
Son Heung-min – moved into a central position – appeared to vanish, while Kane’s replacement Erik Lamela was completely anonymous. Meanwhile, Gareth Bale had to wait until the last ten minutes to come on and failed to make an impact when he did.
Kane has been on incredible form this season, scoring 12 Premier League goals while registering 11 assists. With him on the pitch, Tottenham always look dangerous.
Without their talisman, though? Other attackers need to step up to the forefront and whether they can do that is a question mark. This is a worrying time for Tottenham fans indeed.
