Liverpool dented Tottenham’s Premier League title ambitions in a 1-1 draw at Anfield.
Philippe Coutinho had appeared to have struck a huge blow to the Londoners’ title hopes when he struck shortly after the interval but Harry Kane’s well-taken equaliser just 10 minutes later ensured that honours ended even between the sides following a pulsating clash.
Here were the main talking points from the Reds’ early evening encounter…
Anfield’s new CS blast is as deadly as SAS
Not so long ago, Liverpool used to rely on the SAS for their goal supply.
But in the wake of Luis Suarez’s departure to Barcelona, an equally potent weapon has emerged within Jurgen Klopp’s current armoury – a CS blast.
Philippe Coutinho has stepped into the breach left by the Uruguayan to forge a blossoming partnership in tandem with Daniel Sturridge and it paid off handsomely once more.
A neat one-two between the pair allowed the Brazilian to record his 10th goal of the campaign, making him the club’s top scorer this season, as Jurgen Klopp’s side drew first blood early in the second half.
There is still a long way to go before it is spoken in the same revered terms as the partnership between Sturridge and Suarez, back in 2014, but the signs are encouraging that Liverpool’s two leading lights are developing an enthralling understanding.
One that got away Alli drops off
Much was, rightly, made of Liverpool’s inability, under Brendan Rodgers, to secure the services of Dele Alli last January. The 19-year-old’s talent is undeniable.
But having excelled for both club and country this season, his maiden Anfield bow left a lot to be desired.
Whether the boyhood Reds fan was overawed by his surroundings, in front of a ferocious home crowd, or just simply jaded following numerous energetic performances, he appeared a shadow of his former self in this encounter.
Consequently, Tottenham saw Harry Kane largely isolated as he toiled against the hosts’ admittedly haphazard back line for large parts, with the bulk of chances coming his way from Moussa Dembele’s line-splaying passes.
Liverpool’s one that got away is not quite yet the finished article and Klopp will be thankful for that stunted development after Alli spurned chance late on which may prove costly in Spurs’ title push.
Sakho’s defensive slide continues
For every performance which suggests Mamadou Sakho is the long-awaited heir to the defensive thrones of Jamie Carragher and Sami Hyypia, there are multiple examples why parallels with the bumbling Djimi Traore are far more appropriate.
This was another case of the latter from the France international, with a succession of defensive blundering that made light work of Tottenham’s task.
He continues to believe his own hype, becoming dangerously cocksure in the process. Showboating with a heel-flicked clearance deep in his own half during the opening 45 minutes was somewhat arrogant, to say the least.
Had Dejan Lovren and Emre Can, deputising from his native holding midfield role, not been on hand to spare Sakho’s blushes at regular intervals, the eventual outcome may have been very different.
It has become increasingly clear, contrary to Sakho’s cult following, that Martin Skrtel isn’t Liverpool’s only defensive liability ahead of a summer of upheaval.
No thriller but Reds dent another title tilt
It was exactly 20 years ago this weekend that a title-chasing contingent travelled to Anfield in the hope of making history. We all know what happened after that.
There may have been no repeat of what remains hailed as the greatest game in Premier League history but the narrative remains constant as Tottenham missed a chance to close the gap on current table-toppers on an April evening on Merseyside.
Time will tell whether Mauricio Pochettino’s side ill follow Newcastle’s ‘Entertainers’ of that 1995-96 season into the annals of nearly-men history or if Leicester City will falter where Liverpool and countless others previously did in their push for glory.
But Spurs’ inability to break their Anfield hoodoo is a potential watershed moment in this season’s title race.