Anfield played host to a 2-1 victory for Liverpool over Chelsea this Sunday. The decisive moment came courtesy of Curtis Jones, whose first goal since January ensured that Arne Slot's squad remains at the summit of the Premier League. It was a hard-fought win, marking the tenth victory in just 11 matches across all competitions since Slot took the helm.
The home side opened the scoring in the 29th minute when Mohamed Salah converted a penalty, despite Chelsea controlling much of the early momentum. While Nicolas Jackson managed to level the score shortly after the break, the equalizer didn't last long. Jones pounced on a low cross from Salah, firing a close-range shot past Robert Sánchez to reclaim the lead. It was far from a comfortable afternoon for Liverpool, as Chelsea dominated the shot count and missed several golden opportunities to draw the game.
Despite the pressure, Slot's men showed great resilience to survive their most challenging league test so far. This result leaves Liverpool with 21 points from eight matches, putting them a single point ahead of Manchester City, who also won 2-1 against Wolves on Sunday. Meanwhile, Chelsea sits in sixth place with 14 points.
The transition from Jurgen Klopp to Arne Slot has been remarkably smooth, though the visit from Enzo Maresca’s confident Chelsea side served as a stern warning before a brutal run of fixtures starting with Arsenal. Liverpool spent significant portions of the game defending their own goal, and Chelsea will undoubtedly feel they left a deserved point on the table.
From the opening whistle, Maresca's side played with an aggressive edge to signal their intent. A crucial moment saw Jones pull off a brilliant block to deny Cole Palmer a near-certain goal. However, the tide turned when Levi Colwill fouled Jones in the box, allowing Salah to smash home the penalty for the lead.
Right as the first half ended, Sanchez brought down Jones in a clumsy challenge. After a VAR review, it was determined the keeper had touched the ball first, meaning no penalty was awarded to Liverpool.
Chelsea's Cole Palmer missed a key chance in first-half stoppage time, but the visitors struck back three minutes into the second half. Moises Caicedo found Jackson, who slotted the ball past Caoimhín Kelleher. Although the linesman initially flagged for offside, VAR overturned the call, ruling that Ibrahima Konaté had played him on. The joy was short-lived, however, as Jones restored Liverpool's lead just three minutes later.
Elsewhere in the league, Manchester City secured a 2-1 win over Wolves thanks to a controversial late goal by John Stones, extending their unbeaten league streak to a record-breaking 31 games. While City dominated possession at Molineux, they were stunned in the 7th minute when Jorgen Strand Larsen finished a perfect Nelson Semedo cross to give Wolves an early lead.
Wolves nearly doubled their advantage, but Ederson made a vital save to keep the game within reach. City eventually leveled in the 33rd minute when Josko Gvardiol found a pocket of space and curled a beautiful shot past Jose Sa. The drama peaked when Stones scored from a corner in the dying minutes; after a tense VAR check for a potential offside by Bernardo Silva, the goal was upheld to the delight of Pep Guardiola.
\"I'm happy we won a game like that and that I could get back on the scoresheet,\" noted Stones, recalling his late equalizer against Arsenal last month. He praised the opposition, adding, \"It was a grind. Wolves deserve credit for how they neutralized us and made it so hard to create chances in the final third.\"