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Liverpool suffered a huge blow to their title aspirations in the 2020-21 Premier League, as they fell to shock 1-0 defeat at home agianst Brighton and Hove Albion on Wednesday.
Steven Alzate scored his first Premier League goal to lead Brighton to a well-deserved win. Liverpool have now gone from being unbeaten at Anfield in close to four years to suffering back-to-back home defeats.
Brighton and Hove Albion arrived at Anfield looking to continue their superb run since the turn of the year. Graham Potter's men have only lost once in eight games this year in all competitions; their only defeat during this period came against league leaders Manchester City in the Premier League when they fell by a solitary goal.
On the other hand, Liverpool came into this fixture looking to build on their impressive outing against West Ham United at the weekend, where Mohamed Salah’s brace inspired them to a 3-1 victory.
The Reds were also aiming to bounce back from a disappointing home defeat to Burnley a fortnight ago, where their 68-game unbeaten run came to an end.
However, despite dominating proceedings, Liverpool failed to create enough chances and were also profligate in the attacking third.
In the fiercely contested showdown, Brighton were only allowed 37% possession, but they created the best chances in the game. Liverpool’s only real chance came in the first five minutes when Salah failed to keep his shot low from inside the area.
Brighton took the game to Liverpool, mixing attack with defensive solidity; while they missed several chances to open the scoring, they finally broke the deadlock in the 56th minute.
They did so when midfielder Dan Burn raced to the far post to send in Pascal Gross' cross back into the penalty box; Steven Alzate tucked home for his first Premier League goal for the Seagulls.
Liverpool continued to push for an equaliser but lacked the cutting edge to put the Brighton defence to the sword.
The defending champions have now dropped to fourth in the Premier League table, seven points adrift of leaders Manchester City, who have a game in hand; Brighton are now ten points clear of the relegation zone.
On that note, let us have a look at the five talking points of the game.
#5 Brighton continue to impress
Brighton have added a victory over defending champions Liverpool to their growing list of superb results.
Graham Potter’s men have not conceded in four league matches; they last conceded one in their defeat to Manchester City on January 13.
Since then, they have taken ten points from a possible 12, beating Tottenham Hotspur, Leeds and now Liverpool.
While Brighton were close to the drop zone at the close of 2020, they have turned around their fortunes; they now sit in 15th place, ten points above the bottom three.
#4 Injury woes could cost Liverpool the title
Liverpool have endured an injury-plagued season. Star defender Virgil van Dijk has been out of action since October since injuring his knee in a game against Everton.
His centre-back pair, Joe Gomez, also suffered a ruptured patella tendon in training with the England national team in November.
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp revealed at the weekend that Joel Matip has been ruled out for the rest of the season after suffering an ankle ligament injury.
The Reds took on Brighton without Alisson Becker and Sadio Mane, as both players were out with minor injuries.
In the absence of a plethora of first-team players, who were pivotal to their title run last season, the Reds have appeared uncharacteristically vulnerable and lacklustre.
#3 Liverpool continue to struggle for results
Jurgen Klopp's wait for his 100th win at Anfield continues as Liverpool put on yet another disappointing performance.
The Reds fell to a first loss against the Seagulls at Anfield in almost 40 years as they continue to struggle in their title defence. They have now failed to win against five of the six bottom teams in the Premier League, with their 2-1 win over Sheffield the only exception.
Liverpool have already dropped a whopping 26 points this season; last season they dropped only 15 (three draws and as many defeats).
Since their 7-0 mailing of Southampton, Liverpool have picked up only nine points from a possible 24, while enduring three draws and as many defeats.
#2 Mohamed Salah continues to blow hot and cold
Liverpool star forward Mohamed Salah endured a rather forgettable outing against Brighton.
The Egyptian ace missed a glorious chance to put Liverpool ahead in the opening minutes of the game when he met a lofted pass from Henderson. Salah beat the offside trap but flashed his shot well over the crossbar.
Salah was culpable of another miss. He should have drawn Liverpool level late in the second half when Trent Alexander-Arnold squared a low cross into the Brighton box. However, Salah fired his shot wide, squandering what was Liverpool’s best chance in the second half.
The former AS Roma man has now scored two goals in eight Premier League games since scoring a brace off the bench against Crystal Palace in December.
#1 Liverpool lack creativity in midfield
In a disappointing performance, Liverpool failed to truly test Brighton shot-stopper Robert Sanchez.
While the bulk of the blame could be placed on the front men, the lack of creativity from midfield was simply appalling.
Jurgen Klopp opted for a midfield trio of Thiago Alcantara, Georginio Wijnaldum and James Milner, with Jordan Henderson playing as a makeshift centre-back with Nat Phillips.
However, the trio proved ineffective, as they created no chance for the entire 90 minutes. The absence of the injured Sadio Mane and Diogo Jota was acutely felt, as the lack of support and attacking contributions from midfield left the Reds vulnerable.
This season, no Liverpool midfielder has created more than two big chances in the Premier League, a detrimental stat for a side gunning for the league title.
