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Liverpool secured a hard fought 3-2 win over Newcastle as Virgil van Dijk, Mohamed Salah and Divock Origi got on the scoresheet. The result saw Liverpool leapfrog Manchester City who will play Leicester on Monday.
Van Dijk gave the visitors the lead in the 13th minute after heading in from Trent Alexander-Arnold's cross. The hosts responded well and equalised after seven minutes through Christian Atsu after Salomon Rondon saw his close range effort cleared off the line by Alexander-Arnold.
Mohamed Salah scored his 22nd goal in the league from Alexander-Arnold's cross in the 28th minute. Newcastle started the second half in positive fashion as Rondon scored his side's second nine minutes after the restart. Origi's late header gave Liverpool the all important third goal which set up a frantic finish to the game.
On that note, let us take a look at the three reasons why Liverpool secured victory at St. James' Park.
#3 An early goal sets the pace for Jurgen Klopp's side
Rafael Benitez started with a back five comprising of Javier Manquillo, Fabian Schar, Jamaal Lascelles, Paul Dummett and Matt Ritchie as he looked to deploy a solid defensive line which would limit Liverpool's ability to play in between the lines.
It was imperative for Liverpool to get an early goal to calm nerves and open the game up. They did so after a lapse in concentration allowed van Dijk to have a free header within yards of Dubravka's goal as the Dutchman gave his side the lead in the 13th minute.
Liverpool grew in confidence after scoring their first goal as Fabinho played his trademark diagonal balls which allowed the likes of Sadio Mane and Salah to get in behind Manquillo and Ritchie to create loads of chances for their side. Due to this, Newcastle's defence was stretched, which allowed Liverpool's midfield to assist the forwards.
An early goal gave Liverpool the confidence to create plenty of chances and get at the Newcastle defence. Despite being pegged back twice, Jurgen Klopp's side had the nerve to claw their way back and secure all three points, courtesy of Origi's late winner.
#2 Liverpool take advantage of lapses from Newcastle's defence
Liverpool ensured that the title race goes down to the last matchday as they secured a 3-2 away win over a determined Newcastle side. The Magpies started the game with a back five in order to thwart Liverpool from controlling the game.
In spite of being defensively solid for majority of the game, Newcastle were undone by some momentary lapses in concentration. For the first goal, Lascelles and Schar didn't communicate well, which resulted in van Dijk left unmarked. The 2019 PFA Player Of The Year made no mistake and gave his side the lead from close range, leaving Dubravka with no time to react.
The second goal was also a result of lack of communication and awareness between Manquillo and Dummett. There was a huge gap left between both defenders which gave Salah loads of space to run into and slot his effort past Dubravka.
The likes of Lascelles and Ritchie were also at fault in the build up to the second goal as both went to dispossess Sturridge but failed. The forward later provided a back heel pass to Alexander-Arnold to deliver his cross.
Ritchie and Lascelles were guilty, yet again, for the third goal as Ritchie gave away a needless foul and Lascelles did not do enough to win the aerial battle against Origi. Overall, it was a decent performance from the home side, but a few lapses in concentration proved costly as Jurgen Klopp's men ran out winners.
#1 Liverpool's never say die attitude guides them to three points
In what was a cracker of a game, where the pendulum swung on both sides, Liverpool came up trumps against a resilient Newcastle side. Despite being hit back on two occassions, Liverpool conjured up some late magic yet again to take their points tally to 94 points.
The Reds started off well after Virgil van Dijk scored in the 13th minute from Alexander-Arnold's cross. Newcastle responded well after falling behind and equalised through Atsu. Benitez's side got into their stride, enjoyed a brief period of dominance and could have taken the lead through Ayoze Perez, whose effort hit the post.
Liverpool endured a brief spell of Newcastle dominance and scored from the next real chance they got. Salah scored his 22nd goal of the season in the 28th minute, which further underlined Liverpool's ability to hit back immediately.
The Reds again conceded in the 54th minute and seemingly looked out of ideas as their title challenge started to fade away, only to be ressurected by Origi. Once again, Liverpool displayed nerves of a team competing for the title and came away with three points in a game where they ran out of steam towards the end.
Klopp has instilled a never say die attitude in the Liverpool side which has seen the Reds win so many tricky games over the course of the season.
