Punishing day for Reds
Brighton deal huge blow to Liverpool’s EPL title hopes
LONDON: Brighton condemned Liverpool to their second straight English Premier League home defeat, winning 1-0 to leave the champions with a mountain to climb if they are going to retain their title.
Juergen Klopp’s men appeared to have turned the corner with impressive victories at Tottenham and West Ham after a five-match winless run.
But defeat to lowly Brighton at Anfield leaves them in fourth place, seven points behind leaders Manchester City, who also have a game in hand and look increasingly likely to win their third title in four years.
Liverpool’s 68-game unbeaten home run in the Premier League was ended by Burnley last month and they have now lost consecutive league games at Anfield for the first time since 2012.
Troublingly for Klopp, his side have failed to score in three consecutive home league games for the first time since 1984.
Graham Potter’s men executed their game plan to perfection, snuffing out Liverpool’s dangermen and offering a threat up front.
The only goal of the game came in the 56th minute courtesy of a Steven Alzate strike.
Klopp, who must prepare his team for the daunting task of facing Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City on Sunday, said his team were not mentally fresh.
“The only explanation now is that we are a fatigued team, mentally more or less,” he told BT Sport.
“That leads to not the maximum freshness in your legs.
“We had our moments but they deserved to win.”
He added: “The only thing we can do is use the things that happen and learn from them.
“The solution is always the players.
“It has been a tough week and tonight it was not enough. City are flying and we have to find solutions.”
Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson was again drafted into central defence in the absence of any of the club’s senior centrebacks, with new signing Ben Davies on the substitutes’ bench.
Goalkeeper Alisson Becker was absent due to illness, meaning Caoimhin Kelleher made only his second Premier League appearance, and forward Sadio Mane was also missing.
Liverpool enjoyed the bulk of possession in the early stages but in-form Brighton were organised at the back and pushed forward when they could.
The result lifts Brighton to 15th in the table, 10 points clear of the relegation zone.
“It’s not an easy place to get points,” said Potter. “They’re a top team. We’re just trying our best in this league.
“Every game we face a huge task. It’s one for the supporters and everyone involved in the club. It’s not often a club like us come here and win.”