Competitor or imposter? It was a natural question for Liverpool after a near-perfect start under Arne Slott. However, the first real test in the Premier League was lacking. Chelsea provided it and Liverpool found the answer, returning to the top of the table thanks to a devastating defeat to Enzo Maresco's upstart side.
Mohamed Salah and the standout Curtis Jones, sandwiched in by Nicholas Jackson's second-half equaliser, sealed the win, Slott's seventh in eight league games. Unfortunately, VAR and referee John Brooks were also notable. Chelsea played with confidence but little cutting edge play. This season, Liverpool have shown resilience, organization and penetration when they needed to strengthen their case as potentially the biggest threat to Manchester City's dominance.
After Chelsea made a confident and calm start, the game changed as Liverpool took the lead. There was no serious inconvenience caused to Caoimhin Kelleher, who was filling in for injured Alisson inside Liverpool's goal during the match. Although the visiting team dominated the ball, the hosts' tendency to give the ball away cheaply, by contrast, was not the only source of frustration for the home team. Brooks also added to the atmosphere, even Slott's usual cool touchline demeanor disappearing.
There were just six minutes remaining when Diogo Jota was dragged to the ground by Tosin Adarabioyo as he chased down Salah's long ball inside Chelsea's half. The precedent seemed set 24 hours earlier with William Saliba's red card for dragging Bournemouth striker Evanilsson down in a similar position. However, unlike the Arsenal defender, the Chelsea centre-half was shown a yellow card, a decision that was confirmed by VAR's Michael Oliver. The difference between the two incidents, and one of Adarabioyo's saving graces, was that his defensive colleague Levi Colwill was nearby and there was plenty of space to cover.
Jota's problem wasn't just the color of the cards. The Liverpool striker took an accidental hard blow from the powerful centre-half after a foul and spent the next 20 minutes in obvious discomfort. He was eventually replaced by Darwin Nunez.
Chelsea ran away again when Kodi Gakpo pounced on Roberto Sanchez's poor clearance. But there was some totally unconvincing play from the Chelsea goalkeeper going on. Sanchez's careless distribution and indecision caused problems for the entire team. Jones will punish both shortcomings.
With the influential Alexis Mac Allister sitting on the bench after international duty, and with a recent muscular problem, Jones was making just his second start in the league this season in Liverpool's midfield. There wasn't. He didn't just seize the opportunity and minimize the impact of Mac Allister's absence. He engineered Liverpool's victory.
The midfielder's brilliant contribution was encapsulated in two minutes in the middle of the first half. Firstly, Jones made a fine block on the ground to deny Cole Palmer a Noni Maduke cross after the Chelsea winger once again beat Andy Robertson to the line. Seconds later, with Slott and Anfield furious at Brooks' failure to give Salah a penalty following Colwill's touch, Jones darted into the enemy area and collected Salah's deflected cross. The 23-year-old was clearly clipped from behind by Colwill as he tried to take a shot, but this time Brooks pointed to the spot without hesitation. Salah took the penalty brilliantly. Slott gave a little fist pump.
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After taking the lead, Jones almost set up a second goal for a Liverpool team that performed with more energy and purpose. He brilliantly dismissed Moises Caicedo and teed Salah up with a low cross that Gakpo converted at the back post. Those celebrations were called off due to an offside flag against Salah. In stoppage time of the first half, Jones beat a pass that sliced through Nunez's defense. Sanchez came to see him and forced the midfielder to sprawl, then received a warning for protesting the penalty award, which was duly awarded. However, the penalty and yellow card were both rescinded as Brooks was advised to check the pitchside monitor and spotted Sanchez touching the ball.
Liverpool's dissatisfaction with VAR increased minutes after the restart. Jackson ran through with a great pass from Caicedo and beat Kelleher with a low finish, but it was immediately disallowed for offside. However, after a lengthy review, it was discovered that the Chelsea striker was tripped over by Ibrahima Konate's toe, causing a mass sprint from the blue-clad team to the away end when the equalizing goal was eventually awarded. It turns out. Their joy lasted less than three minutes.
Salah cut through the entire Chelsea defense with a superb cross from the left. Adarabioyo, Colwill and Sanchez were all caught in freeze frame. By the time they reacted, it was too late. Jones duly jumped into space and beat Sanchez with a close-range finish. It was Chelsea's first goal in the Premier League since New Year's Day and would prove decisive, despite Palmer and substitute Christopher Nkunku missing good opportunities as Chelsea searched for a second goal late on.
