James Milner’s penalty earns Liverpool 17th straight win in EPL
Mauricio Pochettino’s problems mount after Tottenham’s 3-0 loss at Brighton
James Milner scored a stoppage-time winner as Liverpool moved eight points clear at the top of the Premier League with a thrilling 2-1 victory over Leicester, while Mauricio Pochettino’s problems mounted after Tottenham’s 3-0 loss at Brighton on Saturday.
Liverpool won for the 17th consecutive league game thanks to Milner’s dramatic contribution to a thrilling clash at Anfield.
Jurgen Klopp’s side ruined Leicester manager Brendan Rodgers’ first return to Liverpool since being replaced by the German in 2015.
By extending their remarkable winning streak, Liverpool have piled pressure on second placed Manchester City ahead of their home game against Wolves on Sunday. Liverpool took the lead in the 40th minute when Milner’s long ball was misjudged by Leicester defender Jonny Evans and Sadio Mane clinically slotted in his eighth goal of the season.
Mane has scored exactly 50 goals in 100 Premier League games for Liverpool, making the Senegal winger the 10th player to reach that milestone for the Reds.
James Maddison snatched thirdplaced Leicester’s equalizer in the 80th minute when he collected Ayoze Perez’s pass and drove his shot under Adrian’s weak attempted save. But five minutes into stoppagetime, Marc Albrighton took the ball away from his own goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel and then clipped Mane, with Milner converting the penalty after a VAR review.
At the Amex Stadium, Tottenham’s crisis deepened as they turned in a desperate performance, while Hugo Lloris suffered a serious arm injury after another howler.
Tottenham keeper Lloris dropped the ball on the goal line and hurt himself in the process in only the third minute, allowing Neal Maupay to open the scoring.
It only got worse after that as Aaron Connolly’s double gave the impressive Seagulls a deserved three points. It ranked as one of the worst performances of Pochettino’s reign and, following on from Tuesday’s 7-2 Champions League humiliation to Bayern Munich, the dark clouds are mounting over the club. Pochettino was forced to emphasize his commitment to Tottenham this week amid speculation he has grown distant from a squad distracted by several players who have been linked with moves.
“We have to keep going. I have to say thank you for the fans. I feel sorry for them, it is massive effort to come and support us,” Pochettino said.