Liverpool were forced to settle for a disappointing 1-1 draw against Chelsea during Saturday’s lunchtime kickoff, as a resilient Blues side weathered an Anfield storm and left the home faithful making their feelings heard.
Heading into the contest at Anfield, Arne Slot‘s Reds would have been confident that they could get back to winning ways, having lost to their arch rivals Manchester United 3-2 on their brisk travels over to Old Trafford.
Indeed, removing this loss from the equation, Liverpool were actually in decent form in the Premier League, with three wins picked up on the spin against Everton, Fulham, and Crystal Palace.
Alongside this streak of wins being in their favour, Chelsea had lost their last six top-flight clashes heading into this lunchtime affair at Anfield.
Yet, come the full-time whistle on Merseyside, there were more audible grimaces and moans from the home masses, as opposed to the deafening roar of applause, as Calum McFarlane managed to steer the Blues to a determined 1-1 draw on their travels.
The final outcome for the Reds looked as if it was going to be far more rosy, though, after Ryan Gravenberch curled home Liverpool’s opener after only six minutes had been played to make it 1-0.
Up to eight goal contributions for the season, now, the Dutchman would wheel away in celebration, beaming with a smile from ear to ear, as stand-in Blues goalkeeper Filip Jörgensen stood no chance of denying his superb effort.
Slot’s side dominated the early exchanges, but they just couldn’t gain a second goal after the number 38’s sensational opener, which opened the door back up for the West London visitors to equalise and make it 1-1.
After Giorgi Mamardashvili denied Marc Cucurella, as the clock ticked away to the half-time mark, Enzo Fernandez would pick up an invaluable equaliser for McFarlane’s men, with his free-kick somehow floating all the way in, as various Liverpool bodies failed to get in the way.
For a team that hadn’t won across their last six league games, Chelsea suddenly sparked into life, and Fernandez very nearly handed them the lead before the half-time.
Half-time: Liverpool 1-1 Chelsea
Chelsea raced out of the traps for the second half in a blistering fashion, too, with Cole Palmer finding the back of the net, only for the ex-Manchester City playmaker’s effort to be ruled out, due to Cucurella being in an offside position.
Slot’s hosts also had their own dramas when it came to disallowed goals, with Anfield rising to its feet when Curtis Jones headed home early into the second half.
Unfortunately, while luck was on their side for Palmer’s disallowed goal, it wasn’t with them on this occasion, with Cody Gakpo also in an offside position in the build-up.
Dominik Szoboszlai did try to beat Jörgensen shortly after this incident, but the stand-in keeper denied the Hungarian’s shot, as the game began to fizzle out.
The Anfield masses would vocalise their frustrations at the drab performance when Rio Nguhoma, who was constantly trying to bomb forward with pace, was substituted off on the 67th minute mark, for a returning Alexander Isak to get a late run-out.
Boos around most sections of Anfield as the lively 17-year-old trudged off, with journalist David Lynch describing the crowd as being “seriously restless” throughout the match.
The disgruntled home support would have been jumping for joy on another day, though, if Szoboszlai had bagged a late winner.
To their dismay, though, his fierce late effort would hit the post, while Virgil Van Dijk would also curse his luck in the latter exchanges, as he couldn’t be a last-gasp match winner again – like the Merseyside Derby – as his own headed effort clattered the crossbar.
Full time: Liverpool 1-1 Chelsea
Slot is back under pressure
While he had fought back against his critics with wins against Everton, Fulham, and Crystal Palace, Slot is now back under severe pressure in the Anfield dug-out for his team’s poor performance against Chelsea.
A convincing win should have been on the cards when you consider the Blues’ wretched form, heading into this contest.
Instead, the Reds just couldn’t kill off McFarlane’s spirited visitors, and from the minute Fernandez’s free-kick flukily hit the back of the net, it was an even showdown.
A top-five position is still very much attainable, but Slot has done himself no favours with the impatient Reds fanbase with this uninspired draw, with the decision to bring off Nguhoma met with widespread vitriol, alongside the dull football on offer.
