Liverpool Begins 2024 With A Bang, Spanks Newcastle 4--2, Extends Lead On EPL Log.
By Olopade Sakiru
Jurgen Klopp's men in the first fixture of English Premier League in the new year spanked Newcastle by four goals to two at Anfield.
The Red is now three points above second placed Aston Villa and out of the reach of Manchester City, who are five points behind with one outstanding match.
The pulsating encounter, saw Liverpool dominating possession for the better part of the first half but with occasional sparkles from the visitors.
What could have been the first goal of the thrilling encounter, was a penalty miss Mohammed Salah after Sven Botman had brought down Luiz Diaz in the vital.
The first half ended goaless with Martin Dubravka becoming the stumbling block, making daring saves to deny rampaging Liverpool from registering any goal.
The second half saw the Red coming into the game with stronger determination to carry the day.
However, they had to wait until 49th to break the deadlock when Darwin Nunez provided an assist for Mohammed Salah to registered the long awaited goal, with Salah scoring his 150th EPL goal in Red's colour.
However, Alexander Isak, restored parity in the 54th minute to silence the ferocious fans of Liverpool at Anfield.
Undaunting, Curtis Jones increased the tally to two, tapping home the ball for the second goal from Mohammed Salah's cross while Code Gakpo registered the third goal in the 28th minute from an assist by Curtis Jones and Salah completed the routing from a spot kick, with Diogo Jota providing a penalty. This time around, Mohammed Salah made no mistake, scoring his 151st goal for Liverpool in EPL matches.
Earlier, in the 81st minute, Sven Botman had headed home a consolatory goal for Newcastle.
The 30 years winless run at Anfield by Newcastle continues while Liverpool continues its dominance over Newcastle whose top four ambition is under threat with the loss at Anfield.
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