Jurgen Klopp loathes these early kick-offs, but he will have loved how this turned out right at the end and was alert enough for some late inspiration. It was his introduction of Curtis Jones and Harvey Elliott that turned a drab and VAR-disrupted game at Crystal Palace. The two young midfielders transformed a 1-0 defeat into a 2-1 victory with Jones cleverly supplying an assist for the equaliser and then Elliott offering a thundering finish in the 90th minute.
Roy Hodgson might well say that a second booking for Jordan Ayew for a foul on Elliott was even more influential since that came just before Mohamed Salah struck. The Palace manager told the ref as much, receiving a booking. Either way, the three minutes that involved Elliott’s introduction, Ayew’s expulsion and Salah’s goal ultimately decided where the three points were going.
