Liverpool missed the chance to overcome Tottenham Hotspur and move into the top four of the Premier League as felipe billingBournemouth’s goal lifted Bournemouth from the bottom of the table in a 1–0 win at the Vitality Stadium.
The Reds started brightly and created an early flurry of chances but struggled to deal with the energy of Bournemouth’s front three and Jurgen Klopp’s men fell behind when dango ouattaraBilling’s low cross swept her close to the half hour mark.
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The visibly stunned visitors struggled to muster a meaningful response. When they did, they lacked the required composure in front of goal as Virgil van Dijk looked wide before Mohamed Salah made a hash of stuff from the place after Adam Smith He was severely penalized for handball.
Bournemouth found themselves sitting deeper and deeper as the minutes wore on, but the hosts held on to secure an unlikely but deserved victory to climb out of the bottom three.
positives
Liverpool came out of the blocks quickly and would have been in front were it not for a brilliant goal-line clearance from jefferson lerma. If nothing else, the Reds showed good character in their positive response after the break.
negatives
The visitors always looked susceptible to counter-attacking, and had no answer as electric Ouattara sent them running erratically and forced the opener when his cross was converted by Billing.
Manager rating out of 10
Jurgen Klopp, 6 — It’s hard to blame Klopp for this. Many of his key men were well below his best, and the German’s decision to move Gakpo to midfield greatly improved his team’s performance.
Player ratings (1-10; 10 = best, players featured after 70 minutes get no rating)
G.K. Alisson6 — He survived a major scare when he was rounded off by Ouattara, who was only able to shoot into the side netting, although the goalkeeper had been exposed and did enough to force the Bournemouth forward. Well defeated by Billing’s cool ending.
DF Trent Alexander-Arnold3 — He lacked his usual sharpness in possession and was poor defensively. He created the best chance of the match for Bournemouth when his cross pass attempt went awry, and he struck a poor shot on target with a half-volley to delight the home fans.
DF Ibrahima Konate5 — The defender had a mixed afternoon, looking shaky in spells and struggled to contain Ouattara, whom he played wide for goal. But he eased the pressure when he rescued Alexander-Arnold and charged forward before being fouled by Lerma.
DF Virgilio van Dijk, 4 — Slow. Desperately close to a second goal in three games when his downward header was scrambled off the line, but he allowed Ouattara a quick past to set up the opener. He later looked wide at another great opportunity.
DF andy robertson6 — He created a problem when his drive down the left was intercepted by a beautiful dissecting pass from Alexander-Arnold, but Nunez was unable to convert his cross. He forced a fine, instinctive stop from Net with a powerful cross shot.
FM Stefan Bajcetic4 — A quiet performance in the middle, and he couldn’t suppress the quality of Billing, who was a real nuisance as the hosts continued to gain confidence.
FM harvey eliott4 — Dominated in midfield at times by Philip Billing, who relieved Elliot of the ball before moving forward and earning a free kick from Konate. As expected, he retired at the break.
FM Fabinho3 — There was a slight sense of desperation about Liverpool after falling behind and that was epitomized when the Brazilian shot wide wide while attempting the showmanship, while wasting a pass straight offside after the break.
FW Mohamed Salah, 3 — Neto saw Neto easily gobble up his tame early effort and found chances hard to come by beyond that, making his mistake from the penalty spot even more costly as the striker shot wide as Liverpool he desperately needed the tie.
F.W. Darwin Nunez5 — He almost got the perfect start for his side when he played the ball back to Salah, but the Egyptian couldn’t get the contact he was looking for. Later, he saw a low effort of his held by Neto again.
F.W. Cody Gakpo6 — He continued his fine run of form in front of goal inside 13 minutes only to be thwarted by the offside flag. He dropped into midfield after the break, allowing him the space he needed to make more of an impact, but he squandered a last-minute chance to level.
substitutes
F.W. Diogo Jotá6 — He replaced Elliot at the break and almost made an instant impact, but Neto stopped his curling effort well. He offered his team a way back when Smith was deemed to have handled his header, but Salah was unable to capitalise.
FM james milner6 — He came on for Alexander-Arnold in the 65th minute, but had few chances to make a noticeable impact.
FM jordan henderson6 — He replaced Fabinho in the 65th minute, but even the captain couldn’t improve Liverpool’s performance.
F.W. Roberto Firmino6 — He replaced Núñez in the 66th minute, but the leaving striker never really saw the goal.
FM fabio carvalhoN/A — A late cameo for the creative youngster who replaced Bajcetic in the 88th minute.
