Main man Manestrikesas unstoppable Reds roll on
A solitary touch of class from Sadio Mane was all Liverpool needed to fend off both Storm Dennis and Norwich for a win at Carrow Road.
Fit-again Mane climbed off the bench to poke home his 12th league goal of the campaign and extend champions-elect Liverpool’s winning streak to 17 consecutive top-flight victories.
The runaway leaders inched closer to a first top-flight title since 1990 by grinding out a nervy win, amid howling winds and driving rain.
Jurgen Klopp’s men are now just one victory away from matching Manchester City’s Premier League consecutive winning run of 18.
Beat West Ham on Monday, February 24 and Watford on Saturday, February 29, and the outright record will be theirs.
For much of a weather-ruined clash the Reds feared a first league draw since the 1-1 tie with Manchester United on October 20, only for super sub Mane to deliver in style.
The match’s sole moment of quality proved a fine way for Mane to toast his first Liverpool action since hobbling out of the Reds’ 2-1 win at Wolves on January 23.
The ever increasing wind ruined anything remotely approaching beautiful football.
The horrid conditions always threatened eye-catching moments for the wrong reasons, but both sides just about avoided any kind of catastrophe in an underwhelming first-half.
Virgil van Dijk provided a collector’s item of a misplaced pass, Mo Salah fought for time and space drifting in off the right – and Liverpoolstruggled against the wind.
When Roberto Firmino failed to cut wide for a routine pass from Trent
Alexander-Arnold to gift Norwich possession, the hosts were visibly emboldened by the levelling weather conditions.
So much so that the Canaries had the chance of the half, with Rupp no doubt fuming with his misjudgement after the fact.
The German midfielder latched on to a ball over the top and found himself one-on-one with Alisson, only to attempt a pass to Pukki when he should have struck on goal.
Alisson quickly palmed away the pass to remove the danger, but Rupp should really have scored.
Liverpool pressed and probed for the remainder of the half but not just without success – with precious little threat.
The Reds hoped the change of ends would boost their control of the conditions, but after the interval the mediocrity continued for both teams.
A miscued Jordan Henderson pass even let Pukki cut away down the left, before the Liverpool skipper was able to head away the danger
Keita drew a solid save from Tim Krul with a 20-yard drive after patient build-up, before van Dijk could not muster any power on a header from a corner
Salah spun away from three defenders for some rare space in the area, but Krul parried his low drive – and was then able to deny Keita on the follow-up.
Max Aarons’ blushes were spared when his deflection of Andrew Robertson’s cross flew wide of the net
Liverpool kept pressing and pressing, and just when Liverpool were in their closest spot of the day, Mane delivered with a lovely touch to control Henderson’s ball over the top before firing past Krul.