Liverpool fail to win in Fulham thriller but show key trait in title race

Liverpool 2-2 Fulham: A frantic game at Anfield saw Andy Robertson sent off early and the returning Diogo Jota snatch a late equaliser for Arne Slot’s men but that only tells half the story

Two points dropped, one test of character passed. It remains to be seen which proves more significant in the final reckoning but this was stirring stuff from Liverpool.

Twice in the position of being both a goal and a man down, they conjured two equalisers in a demonstration of their spirit and Arne Slot’s resourcefulness. If the Dutchman was supposed to be about control, this was a sequel to the chaos of the 3-3 draw at Newcastle. Slot, normally that byword for calmness, was caught up in the emotion of the occasion, getting cautioned at one point, his head in his hands at another.

Yet if he displayed some cool thinking to extend Liverpool’s unbeaten run to 19 games, so did Diogo Jota. Seven minutes into his comeback after more than seven weeks out, the substitute showed the composure to level. The bare facts are that victory eluded Liverpool for a second successive league match just as Fulham, after holding Arsenal, made another intervention in the title race. In a match that turned into a 107-minute epic of 28 shots, seven yellow cards for the players – plus one for Slot – and a red, Fulham held their own.

If it is their misfortune to be demoted to a subplot, it was a tale of two left-backs. Antonee Robinson was the outstanding player on the pitch, Andy Robertson soon off the pitch. The Fulham flyer set up both of his side’s goals. His Liverpool counterpart shaped the occasion, compiling an unwanted hat-trick of sorts in his brief, painful outing. Hurt in the first minute, with Issa Diop perhaps fortunate to escape an immediate expulsion for his studs-up challenge, he got the final touch for Fulham’s first goal and then collected the early red card himself.

It meant that, when added time was included, Liverpool played almost 90 minutes with 10 men. If Slot has excelled as a problem solver so far in his reign, he tinkered, at first unsuccessfully and later more influentially to change a game that threatened to get away from Liverpool.

Fulham were much superior in the first half. Yet while Slot may not seem as inspirational an orator as his predecessor, Jurgen Klopp, he has shown a capacity to galvanise his team at the interval. When Jota struck, 22 of Liverpool’s last 25 goals had come in second halves.

Diogo Jota was Liverpool’s hero late on (EPA)

But Andy Robertson had left them a big task with his sending off (Reuters)

His capacity to work with and, at times, reinvent, Klopp’s players was given a further examination when Robertson departed which, with Kostas Tsimikas injured, left Liverpool without a natural left-back. Slot got creative; sadly for him, his team did not before the break.

A second piece of managerial intervention revived his side. His immediate rejig was to 3-4-2 with Ryan Gravenberch dropping into a back three. It gave Fulham plenty of space on the flanks with Robinson and Harry Wilson, in particular, threatened to exploit. His second-half switch was to a back four with Gravenberch in the middle, but stepping into midfield when Liverpool had possession. Then came more changes: Gravenberch into midfield when Curtis Jones went off, a front four by the end with Darwin Nunez and Jota both on.

His substitutes did the trick. Nunez, criticised for his lack of goals, instead made one, finding Jota, who marked his first appearance since October by turning past the excellent Jorge Cuenca and beating Bernd Leno.

Yet the first managerial switch to pay dividends came when Marco Silva recalled Andreas Pereira, marginalised since suggesting he wanted to join Marseille, for Emile Smith Rowe. Fulham have a potency, as they showed by scoring for a 15th consecutive league game, and Liverpool conceded for the first time in 447 minutes at Anfield, Fulham succeeding where the champions of England, Spain and Germany had failed by breaching their defence. Pereira volleyed in Robinson’s deep cross, though it may have required the deflection off Robertson’s thigh to defeat Alisson.

Gakpo’s diving header had brought Liverpool level early in the second half (AFP via Getty Images)

Fulham impressed and were well worth their point (REUTERS)

The Scot’s afternoon was to deteriorate further. Robertson’s poor touch came at a sizeable cost, allowing Wilson to scurry on to it and behind the Liverpool defence. When Robertson tripped him, the second red card of his Liverpool career followed.

Cody Gakpo initially assumed some of his duties, going to left wing-back. But Slot’s switch at half time restored his compatriot to the wing and Gakpo surged into the box to meet Mohamed Salah’s curling cross with a diving header. It was a seventh goal in his last 10 games for the Dutchman. Even as Salah’s scoring run ended after seven straight league games, he had an assist.

And Liverpool were vibrant, powered by the running of the indefatigable Dominik Szoboszlai. Joe Gomez turned the clock back to last season as he surged forward from left-back. He was denied a penalty even though Kenny Tete blocked him in a manner seemingly more suited to various oval-ball sports. Tete hobbled off injured himself soon after.

Fulham, though, had the mettle to regain the lead, again looking on course for just a third win in 39 trips to Anfield. Silva was the first manager to introduce a scoring substitute. After a second surge deep into Liverpool territory by Robinson, he crossed and Rodrigo Muniz’s low finish went in off Gomez. Advantage Fulham but Liverpool were not finished.

Their response bodes well for their title chances. But, amid a frantic finale, they could not claim the extra two points.