HIGH FIVE LIFTS KLOPP
Mane & Salah cut the goal difference with City and put the pressure on Pep’s men
AGAINST a team with just three wins all season, it was never a question of how, always only of how many.
In the end, it was not even Liverpool against Huddersfield or against Manchester City’s goal difference but Salah v Mane and both v the record books.
On a night which started with a record – the Reds’ fastest-ever Premier League goal, from Naby Keita after 15 seconds – the two strikers slugged it out in the battle to be the league’s leading scorer.
It finished in an honourable draw on the night with two goals apiece, Sadio Mane scoring twice and Mo Salah replying with a wonderful lob on the stroke of half time and a second-half tap-in.
That took him to 21 and ahead of his team-mate in the fight for the Golden Boot. Mane’s 20 is one ahead of Sergio Aguero and PierreEmerick Aubameyang.
If that was not enough, Salah added even more lustre by writing another chapter in Anfield history. That goal just before the break, Liverpool’s third of first half stroll, ensured he beat Sam Raybould – from the early 1900s – and the legendary Roger Hunt to become the highest scorer after 100 games for the Reds, with 69 goals.
Read that again. In less than two seasons Salah has 69 goals. Yet he is not good enough to be named in the PFA team of the year.
At the end, as the dust settled on this scrap between the two team-mates, it put Liverpool back on top of the Premier League with a serious message to Manchester City.
Not only are they not going away, but they are going to press them ferociously. It is the 29th time the lead has changed hands at the top this season. The pressure is firmly back on City to make it 30 at the weekend.
Not only that, but Liverpool significantly cut the goal difference gap – which could be vital.
Should City lose to Burnley and hand the Reds a lead in that respect, they can afford to draw one of their two final games and still be champions.
That is how close it has become in this epic title race. It is all about goals. And Liverpool certainly provided plenty of them against a Huddersfield side who have lost 22 of their last 24 matches.
Keita started it all moments after kick-off when he forced a mistake from Jon Stankovic and then slid onto a return pass from Salah to steer home.
The visitors came into the game for the next 20 minutes or so, before Mane began his Golden Boot crusade, with a fine header from Andy Robertson’s wonderful leftwing cross.
The full-back now has 11 assist in the Premier League and 13 in all competitions, after providing that tap-in for Salah later.
But his partner, Trent Alexander-Arnold was not to be outdone, when he took his total to 11 for the campaign on the stroke of half time with a through ball which Salah converted in style.
After the break, it was a question of how many more records and by how much Liverpool could close City’s goal difference advantage.
It is down to three now. Liverpool also made it 100 goals in two consecutive seasons when Mane headed home a fine Jordan Henderson cross (left).
And then Salah got onto the end of another Robertson cross on 83 minutes to record his moment of history.
You now wonder if an even more glorious chapter in history is about to be written.