Here’s Andy Hunter’s report from Anfield.
Dean Henderson, the Palace keeper, pays tribute to his defenders when talking to the BBC: ““The amount of blocks, passes across, blocks. They made save after save for me, I had to make saves as well. I felt like I was out there for about a year, we rode our luck at times but I’m delighted.
“I think the lads believed we could do something today on the coach today, the pressure was on them. If we play our stuff and once bodies come back, with what the manager has got us doing, we will be playing good stuff.”
Colum Fordham, too: “The lack of precision in Liverpool’s finishing (analysed well by Jonathan Wilson) is coming home to roost. How Darwin Nunez missed that volley from point blank range someone up there only knows. But it’s the sloppy passing that is really surprising.”
Jeremy Boyce gets in touch: “Don’t you get the feeling that Kloppie could bring on Superman, Batman and The Incredible Hulk now, and it still wouldn’t make any difference ? When it’s not happening, it’s not happening.”
Kári Tulinius gets in touch: “Glasner will rightly receive lots of plaudits for his team’s performance, but as a squad, Crystal Palace just make a lot more sense when Olise and Eze are both available. With them in the team, opponents have a lot more to think about. “
The table ahead of Arsenal v Aston Villa. Nice reading for Palace, grim for Liverpool.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Man City | 32 | 44 | 73 |
| 2 | Arsenal | 31 | 51 | 71 |
| 3 | Liverpool | 32 | 41 | 71 |
| 4 | Aston Villa | 32 | 17 | 60 |
| 5 | Tottenham Hotspur | 32 | 16 | 60 |
| 6 | Newcastle | 32 | 17 | 50 |
| 7 | Man Utd | 32 | -1 | 50 |
| 8 | West Ham | 33 | -6 | 48 |
| 9 | Chelsea | 30 | 3 | 44 |
| 10 | Brighton | 32 | 2 | 44 |
| 11 | Wolverhampton | 32 | -5 | 43 |
| 12 | Fulham | 33 | -2 | 42 |
| 13 | AFC Bournemouth | 32 | -10 | 42 |
| 14 | Crystal Palace | 32 | -17 | 33 |
| 15 | Brentford | 33 | -11 | 32 |
| 16 | Everton | 31 | -10 | 27 |
| 17 | Nottm Forest | 33 | -16 | 26 |
| 18 | Luton | 33 | -24 | 25 |
| 19 | Burnley | 33 | -35 | 20 |
| 20 | Sheff Utd | 32 | -54 | 16 |
Full-time: Liverpool 0-1 Crystal Palace
The faces on Liverpool players say it all. They know it’s over. Particularly if they miss chance after chance after chance like that. Let’s credit Palace, and a fine plan well executed by Oliver Glasner. Jurgen Klopp looks bereft, Virgil van Dijk close to tears.
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90+7 min: One minute to go, and Liverpool now desperate for a point when they needed three. They have a free-kick and up goes Alisson, a previous scorer. The ball flashes back across everyone, and goes out. Liverpool have lost, and what a win for Palace.
90+6 min: Palace win a throw in the Liverpool half. And then another. Anfield is emptying.
90+5 min: Van Dijk is going up, to play centre-forward. Elliott cuts in, and loops it over eveyone. There’s a sense of doomed disbelief descending at Anfield. Agonising. Palace fans can be heard now. Huge roars as Mitchell wins a throw from Elliott’s boot.
90+3 min: What an incredible exhibition of defending, and desperate, edgy finishing this has been.
90+1 min: Jota’s flick. Salah can’t miss, can he? No, Mitchell gets in the way. More wow.
Seven added minutes.
90 min: Mateta goes off, Odsonne Eduoard comes on. Mateta has played very well. There will be seven minutes added on.
89 min: Corner forced by Gakpo at the Kop End. That’s headed away by Andersen. Then Robertson skews a pass. And Palace have a goalkick.
88 min: Liverpool push push push. Palace back – all 10 of them – in shape. But no out-ball when the time comes to clear it.
86 min: Joel Ward – Mr Dependable – clears after Gakpo’s run. The ball is pinging into the Palace box but Henderson saves first and then Lerma launches it away.
85 min: Jota sends away Salah, who only just retains possession. A Munoz foul means Liverpool have a free-kick in a good position but Mitchell – excellent today – heads away. Then Szoboszlai – no look – almost puts Mateta in for Palace.
82 min: More Palace panic after Mitchell shanks the ball skyward. Andersen knocks behind for a corner. Henderson flaps after Van Dijk got there first and then crumples Munoz down.
81 min: Jurgen Klopp’s current expression? Mournful is probably the best available description.
80 min: Harvey Elliott is imminent for Liverpool to add his scurrying and vision to the mix. Meanwhile, Wharton almost sends away Schlupp, before “Trent” makes a mess of his pass to Salah.
79 min: More loose play from Salah. Nobody looks in good nick for Liverpool. It will have to be force of will that gets them a goal. Or two. Gasps as Jota runs the ball out. Wharton had watchful eyes on him. What a player Wharton looks like he could be.
78 min: A lull in play, and three Palace subs. Off go Clyne, Hughes and Eze. On come Schlupp, Ward and Riedewald. To say Palace took their time over that is putting it mildly.
75 min: And now Liverpool must score. Jones is clean through, just Henderson to beat. And yet. And yet. And yet. He misses. Wow.
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74 min: Now Palace almost score. Mateta gets the ball from Andersen’s flick, and at point-blank range, Alisson saves! Wow!
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72 min: How did it stay out? More chaos, the ball falls to Jota, who can only poke the ball in and Clyne throws himself in front of it. And it stays out. What an amazing piece of defending but equally, what a miss by Jota.
71 min: Palace are increasingly loose but Ayew goes away with the ball, and Jones fouls him to be yellow-carded for a tactical foul.
70 min: The corner comes in, Van Dijk gets up. And misses. Agony for the skipper but Liverpool are pushing on and and on here.
69 min: Palace sub: Olise, who shown off flashes but is clearly short of sharpness, and on comes Ayew to work the press across the front. Szoboszlai meanwhile forces a corner from a lunging Andersen.
67 min: So Jota and Gakpo reboot the forward line. Salah stays on as, presumably, he is Salah. An instant chance for Jota to play in Jones but he swings and misses. Robertson’s cross seems to come off Clyne’s arm, but there will no penalty after a VAR look. Seen them given.
66 min: Quite a wait for a break in play for those subs to come on. Eventually, as Konate clears, Nunez slops off, but looks disappointed. Diaz, too. He’s not had a good game, either.
64 min: Jota and Gakpo coming on soon. Nunez surely one of those to go. It’s been one of those Darwin days. (Wang Chung anyone?)
62 min: More chaos. Wharton, so elegant, almost gets Mateta away, and when Hughes is penalised, off go Liverpool. Trent Alexander-Arnold gets the chance to shoot and misses wildly.
60 min: More chaos, another loose touch, this time it’s Salah. And when Liverpool chase the second ball, Szoboszlai cranks it well over.
59 min: Alexander-Arnold tries to find a way through. Liverpool are pushing on gamely enough but the craft has deserted them so far. Diaz wins a corner, from where most of their danger has come.
57 min: Now Mac Allister makes a mess of a pass to Jones.
56 min: Nunez again on the gallop but again his touch is heavier than heaven itself and he blams it off the thigh of a Palace defender. It was probably meant to be a pass for Salah.
54 min: Better from Liverpool, better from Nunez, who flicks to Salah and Jones is stopped in the act. From the corner, the ball drops and Nunez must score…but can’t. Henderson’s thigh stops the ball.
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52 min: Palace meanwhile look dangerous as Eze flashes the ball across goal after Mateta’s burst. Liverpool are panicking. Robertson – again – looks to get something going. The ball falls to Nunez who shoot from an impossible angle, practically behind the goal and shanks the ball into the Kop to groans.
51 min: Dechlan Brennan gets in touch: “Get the feeling the last couple of months have put a decent dollar value on Kelleher but Liverpool may struggle to hold on to him. Far too good to play second fiddle.”
He’s 25, too.
Rupak also gets in touch: “This match’s first half and the whole of Atalanta match have been very much like Liverpool of 2022-23, nervy, open, not creating much, looking lost in opposition box. Maybe, weirdly, they’re doing an Arsenal of last season, losing momentum at the business end, or maybe Klopp still has something in his hat to pull out. Let’s see whether the whole Liverpool team can muster the courage and composure like Robertson showed by saving that goal.”
50 min: The home fans cheered by Alexander-Arnold coming in, but booing Henderson as he takes his time on the ball. Mc Allister commits a tactical foul to stop Hughes sending away Olise and Eze.
48 min: Bradley looks in some pain, unable to put weight on his injury. Is that the end of his season? What a season it’s been. Roars for “Trent” as he comes on.
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46 min: Back underway and what looks like bad news for Liverpool. He tackles Eze, and seems to have damaged his ankle. Trent Alexander-Arnold is coming on.
Half-time sub for Liverpool: Endo off, Szoboszlai on. Endo hadn’t had a good game.
Elsewhere in the world of football.
Half-time: Liverpool 0-1 Crystal Palace
The truth is this could have been so much worse for Liverpool, who have continued their Atalanta form. Without Andy Robertson’s desperate hack from the line, Palace – assured and with a clear plan – might have been further ahead.
45+2 min: Henderson patiently lets the ball drop into his area before picking it up and taking more time. Liverpool look ready for half-time, Anfield is quiet, with an undertow of grumbling from the fans as the whistle sounds.
45 min: Mateta dives headlong to divert the ball past Alisson’s right-hand post. Was Van Dijk clinging on? The striker seems to think so. Two more minutes added on here.
44 min: Liverpool remain in their frightful hurry. And tense, too. Endo loses the ball to yet more groans and Glasner urges on his team. Eze sends away Olise, who has his shot blocked. That came from a mistake from Konate.
42 min: Olise pings in a shot that Alisson has to dive down low to save. Next, Liverpool seem to be certain to score but Diaz makes a mess of his pass to Salah and was offside in any case. So much happening. Frantic is the word.
41 min: Eze attempts some magic in a dangerous area. Can Liverpool take advantage? No, Jones overhits it, to loud groans. They are struggling for rhythm.
39 min: Andersen has to step away to clear from Bradley, who has previously had to do far more defending than has been customary in his fledgling career.
38 min: Jones and Robertson are the two Liverpool players taking it to Palace. There are groans when Nunez loses possession. And boos while Henderson takes his time over a free-kick.
36 min: Palace skating through again. Endo gets caught and then Eze slips in Olise who loses his footing just as Alisson slides in. That’s a decent chance that’s been passed up.
34 min: Oliver Glasner can be heard urging on his team, his shiny white sneakers echoing the colours of the touchline. The game is chaotic, but it’s Liverpool who are frantic with worry and concern. Feels like if Glasner can get Palace clear this season they will a lot of fun next season. His Eintracht team were a good watch.
33 min: Mac Allister is fouled on the very edge of the Palace box. Free-kick, and a few contenders to take it. Mac himself takes it, but can’t beat the wall.
31 min: Palace cut through Liverpool down the left, and this time Van Dijk triggers the offside flag.
Title race twists and turns, you say? By crikey!
30 min: Rick Harris gets in touch: “Liverpool look shot and it is beginning to look like emulating United’s 3rd place and Carabao Cup win from last season may be their level when the dust settles. Klopp has chosen the right time to leave but maybe he should have waited until the end of the season to tell everyone.”
29 min: Close again! A save from Henderson, Robertson’s cross, Diaz’s shot. A fine save. All Liverpool now….Konate wallops wide from the resultant corner.
28 min: Liverpool hit the bar! Robertson takes the kick himself and then a madcap scramble ends with Endo swinging and hitting the bar. Palace smuggle the ball away somehow. Van Dijk, in the opposite box, again seemed unable to get his legs right.
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27 min: Robertson, ever determined, forces a corner.
26 min: Nunez wins the physical battle with Andersen, and then turns to send away Salah. It’s overhit this time but that’s decent centre-forward play, like peak Andy Carroll. It’s looking like Liverpool’s best hopes lie in getting the ball launched over the Palace press.
24 min: Diaz makes a scamper into the box and clashes with Munoz. No penalty, and nor should it be. Only half-hearted claims.
22 min: Lerma returns the favour with a crunching, well-timed tackle on Nunez, and from the resultant pairs of corner, Clyne, against his old club, closes down Andy Robertson, perhaps the only player in a red shirt playing well.
21 min: Liverpool may be comeback kings but they need to improve. And fast. Jones tries to step it up, and Lerma, who has played well as central defender, get on the end of a Nunez baulk.
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19 min: Liverpool are, frankly, all over the show, Palace now dominant in the fashion Liverpool were at Old Trafford this time last week.
18 min: So close for Palace! Mateta is through, a calamity for Liverpool, he beats Alisson and dinks towards goal, and Robertson clears! Wow, that was so so so close. Again, it was Van Dijk who had switched off.
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16 min: Eze sets off one of his trademark runs, beating a couple before Konate clatters into him, a shoulder barge. Play is waved on, but that looked painful.
15 min: Too easy for Eze? Liverpool defending like a sieve again, and if Conor Bradley was targeted, Virgil van Dijk was just as culpable. The radar has faded somewhat this season.
Goal! Liverpool 0-1 Crystal Palace (Eze, 14)
The Palace plan pays off, as they push up down the left, and Mitchell, from the byline and Eze breezes into space and taps in.
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13 min: Is Alisson ring rusty? A clanked kick straight out of play suggests he might well be. Is Kelleher better on the ball? He might be, you know.
12 min: Liverpool stepping it right up, and it takes some key defending from Joachim Andersen to clear the danger. Wharton is then fouled by a flailing Curtis Jones.
10 min: Palace take their time over a throw. Perhaps that’s when they rest. They’ve been very busy of late. Their back three is closing down Liverpool’s trident. Mac Allister, as Nunez misreads his pass, scuffs wide. Communication breakdown, but no nervous breakdown yet.
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8 min: Shot no 1 from Nunez as Andy Robertson opens up space, then releases the new Crazy Horse. Henderson, in Palace’s goal, saves with ease to spare.
7 min: Palace counter, then Mateta, Wharton and Hughes force the ball from Bradley.
6 min: So, not easy so far for Liverpool but they soon enough gain a dominance of possession.
5 min: Palace will not be allowing Liverpool to pass the ball around the back in Hansen to Gillespie to Hansen to Lawrenson to Nicol to Gillespie fashion. The plan is to push up, and win the ball where Olise and Eze can weave magic.
3 min: Liverpool’s first attack sees Mo Salah and Conor Bradley link down the right, before Alexis Mac Allister makes a mess of his pass in rather uncharacteristic fashion.
2 min: Palace are pushing up, pressing high. A risky strategy? So is sitting back and soaking it all up.
Away we go at Anfield
1 min: Both teams take the knee and off we go, with Anfield rocking. Palace go from the b of the bang and Alisson comes out to palm clear a Tyrick Mitchell cross before then making a save from Eze. Liverpool beginning slackly.
A rousing version of You’ll Never Walk Alone, too, with Sky cameras giving the rendition a full showing before a minute’s silence for the 35th anniversary of the Hillsborough Disaster. That’s tomorrow, April 15th. Anfield descends to a complete hush before applause rings out as referee Chris Kavanagh’s whistle goes.
The players make their way to the field, and the banners have been restored to the Spion Kop.
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Jurgen Klopp spoke to Sky Sports, starting with that Atalanta team: “It was not an off day, we just didn’t get it. We’re not going to overreact, we lost a football game and now we have an opportunity to show a reaction in a different competition.
“Let’s just be lively, be us, play the football game and see what we get for it. It’s wonderful to have Alisson back, it’s really good news. The whole squad situation is getting better.
“The alarm bell was loud enough in the last game, everyone heard it. And of course now I want to see a reaction. We have to defend as a unit, in these moments better.”
Oliver Glasner spoke to Sky Sports: “We have been competitive, but against the top teams in the league you have to be focussed and concentrated, aware for 95 minutes. You can’t allow them to have a chance, because they will punish you. That happened against Man City but you can see from that game that we create chances too. In transition we create chances, in open play as well, but of course we have to be a little bit pragmatic.”
There was insurrection in the air at Anfield on Sunday. Liverpool fans are not alone in their protest against owners for whom it seems there can never be enough money.
It’s been a great – and imperfect title race, all the better for that imperfection.
Last time out: not great for either team.
As it stands. Liverpool can go back top for a couple of hours at least. Palace are skirting danger.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Man City | 32 | 44 | 73 |
| 2 | Arsenal | 31 | 51 | 71 |
| 3 | Liverpool | 31 | 42 | 71 |
| 4 | Aston Villa | 32 | 17 | 60 |
| 5 | Tottenham Hotspur | 32 | 16 | 60 |
| 6 | Newcastle | 32 | 17 | 50 |
| 7 | Man Utd | 32 | -1 | 50 |
| 8 | West Ham | 32 | -4 | 48 |
| 9 | Chelsea | 30 | 3 | 44 |
| 10 | Brighton | 32 | 2 | 44 |
| 11 | Wolverhampton | 32 | -5 | 43 |
| 12 | AFC Bournemouth | 32 | -10 | 42 |
| 13 | Fulham | 32 | -4 | 39 |
| 14 | Brentford | 33 | -11 | 32 |
| 15 | Crystal Palace | 31 | -18 | 30 |
| 16 | Everton | 31 | -10 | 27 |
| 17 | Nottm Forest | 33 | -16 | 26 |
| 18 | Luton | 33 | -24 | 25 |
| 19 | Burnley | 33 | -35 | 20 |
| 20 | Sheff Utd | 32 | -54 | 16 |
Liverpool also welcome back Trent Alexander-Arnold to the team. Alisson Becker returns after 10 weeks out. Mohamed Salah, Conor Bradley, Andy Robertson and Luis Diaz are back in, though three of those played half the Atalanta game. Diogo Jota’s back, too, and on the bench.
Michael Olise played the closing minutes of Palace’s loss to Manchester City last week, and there’s a surprise start for Nathaniel Clyne in place of Joel Ward.
The teams - Alisson back for Liverpool, Olise for Palace
Liverpool: Alisson, Bradley, van Dijk, Konate, Robertson, Jones, Endo, Mac Allister, Salah, Nunez, Diaz. Subs: Gomez, Szoboszlai, Gakpo, Elliott, Jota, Gravenberch, Kelleher, Alexander-Arnold, Quansah.
Crystal Palace: Henderson, Munoz, Andersen, Lerma, Clyne, Wharton, Hughes, Mitchell, Olise, Mateta, Eze. Subs: Ward, Tomkins, Ayew, Schlupp, Edouard, Ahamada, Matthews, Riedewald, Ozoh.
Referee: Chris Kavanagh (Lancashire)
Preamble
The heat is on for Liverpool. Crystal Palace, too, even if Liverpool’s need for a win is the obvious headline requirement here. After Old Trafford, after Atalanta, there are wobbles aplenty on Merseyside. On Thursday in the Europa League, Jurgen Klopp shuffled his team, only to make three changes at half-time. It made no difference. In fact, matters got worse. Within Liverpool’s play, there are shards of high quality but weaknesses aplenty, too. Palace meanwhile have won just one match since Oliver Glasner came in. And again, while there are positive signs, there are also serious causes for concern. Not least that Brentford ended their own winless run, placing pressure on Palace not to slip further and get dragged down amid the Lutons.
Kick-off is 2pm UK time. Join me.
