Liverpool suffered their first loss at Anfield in the league after 68 consecutive games without defeat. The series was interrupted by Burnley, who won 0-1. The only goal was scored by Ashley Barnes in the 83rd minute from a penalty. In the fourth consecutive match of the Premier League, the Reds failed to score, and in the fifth consecutive championship match they did not win. They are already six points behind leader Manchester United.
Their last lost at Anfield in a Premier League was almost 4 years ago – in April 2017. Jurgen Klopp made some changes to the squad and left Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino on the bench. Divock Origi and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain started in the attack instead. Jose Matip returned to the pitch, but Jordan Henderson was not in the group for the game.
Liverpool started actively and tried to put pressure on the opponent from the very beginning. The hosts created couple of chances in front of Burnley’s area, but the defense of the guests managed to deflect several dangerous crossings. The defense of Liverpool on the other hand did not seem very stable. In the 13th minute, Alisson had to intervene on the edge of the penalty area to stop Barnes’ shot.
Klopp’s team was trying to overcome the opponent’s defense, but the ideas on how to do it were lacking. Shaqiri and Oxlade-Chamberlain tried long-range shots. After half an hour of play, Origi tried and made room for a shot in the penalty area, but Pope saved. A little later, the Belgian tested the visitors’ goalkeeper again, but with the same result.
A mistake by Ben Mee provided the best opportunity for Liverpool. The defender made a huge blunder that brought Origi alone against Pope. The striker advanced and shot, but hit the crossbar.
At the beginning of the second half, Liverpool picked up the pace and came to a slightly more dangerous situations. Nick Pope saved everything that was thrown at him. He deflected a strong shot from Alexander-Arnold, and then with his feet stopped Mane at the second chance.
Salah and Firmino appeared on the field, and the Egyptian immediately got a chance to score. He shot to the near corner of Pope, but the goalkeeper saved. No goals were scored and the tension in the Liverpool team was rising. At the other side, Burnley’s rare attacks were sometimes very dangerous. This led to the 83rd minute, when Fabinho made a fatal mistake. He let Ashley Barnes enter the penalty area, Alisson knocked him down and the referee awarded a penalty. The victim was accurate from the penalty spot and further complicated the situation for Liverpool, 0-1.
Klopp’s team had no answer. There was despair and fatigue in the team’s movement and the players failed to even organize a final push.
