Liverpool 1-0 Fulham: Match analysis, player ratings and remaining fixture

Free play report and highlights as Mohamed Salah condemns Fulham to third straight loss as Liverpool move four points up from top 4; With a fifth straight win for the first time since April 2022, the Reds close the gap on fourth-placed Man Utd, who have played two fewer games

Liverpool kept their chances of securing a Champions League place as underdogs as a 1-0 win over Fulham moved them within four points of fourth-placed Manchester United.
Mohamed Salah was Liverpool’s game-winner when he scored his 17th Premier League goal of the season from the penalty spot after Issa Diop recklessly challenged Darwin Nunez six minutes before the break.
Liverpool were credited with a stifling save from Alisson as they prevented Carlos Vinicius from scoring a point for Fulham late in the second half before substitute Bobby Decordova-Reid snuffed out the visitors’ best chance in the additional time.
But Salah’s penalty was enough for Liverpool to claim a fifth successive Premier League victory, which lifts them to fifth place while Fulham remain 10th after a third consecutive defeat.

Player ratings

Liverpool: Alisson (8), Alexander-Arnold (7), Konate (7), Van Dijk (7), Tsimikas (6), Fabinho (6), Jones (6), Henderson (6), Salah (8), Nunez (6), Diaz (7)

Subs: Gakpo (5), Robertson (5), Jota (N/A), Milner (N/A), Elliott (N/A)

Fulham: Leno (6), Soares (6), Tosin (6), Diop (4), Robinson (6), Palhinha (6), Lukic (6), Wilson (6), Cairney (5), Willian (5 ) ) ), Vinicius (5)

Subs: Kebano (5), Solomon (5), Decordova-Reid (5), Reed (5), James (n/a)

Man of the match: Alisson Becker

Liverpool maintain pressure on top four rivals

While London rivals Tottenham could not resist the early charge at Anfield on Sunday, Fulham got off to a good start and had their first taste of a lead when Harry Wilson’s cross was clipped out of the mouth by Virgil van Dijk within four minutes.
Trent Alexander-Arnold, flourishing in the freedom of his new hybrid role, soon after registered Liverpool’s first try and shot inches wide after a clear connection with Salah, but the first try on goal would fall to the visitors, through Carlos Vinicius which he stabbed . Alisson’s palms just before the quarter of an hour.

Thirty-seven minutes of Fulham’s endurance were interrupted by a moment of madness from Diop. After faltering in possession and putting Nunez under pressure, the centre-back compounded his mistake by recklessly attacking the Liverpool forward. Referee Stuart Atwell was quick to point the spot, and neither was Salah as he struck Liverpool straight down the middle with an emphatic penalty.

Fulham gained confidence as Liverpool’s inability to find a second stretched into the second half, but Alisson made a brilliant save from the feet of Vinicius to deny the visitors some of the spoils as they looked to equalize.

Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson missed a chance to seal victory when he went wide late and it almost proved a costly miss when Decordova-Reid missed Fulham’s last chance with virtually the last game.

Salah ignores penalty jitter – Opta stats

Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah has become the fourth non-English player to score 20 Premier League penalties, after Sergio Aguero (27), Thierry Henry (23) and Luka Milivojevic (22). Liverpool won his first Premier League victory against Fulham since March 2019 and ended a series of three games of this type without victory against the western London team.
Liverpool has won its last 20 home games in the Premier League when they scored the first goal. It was only between October 2012 and August 2014 that they were longer in competition as such a race (25 games).

Fulham has lost seven of his last nine first League games. In fact, no team has had no defeats in the competition since early March (Nottingham Forest also 7).
Liverpool has won his last five Premier League games, his longest winner since April 2022 (10 games).

courtesy: sky sport