Liverpool beat Tottenham for first EPL win of 2021

Liverpool returned to winning ways in the English Premier League (EPL), thanks to a 3-1 win against Tottenham Hotspurs at their London stadium on Thursday night.

In an exciting and VAR-dominated match, Jurgen Klopp’s men finally ended their poor run of one win in seven matches and no win in four EPL games through goals from Roberto Firmino, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Sadio Mane.

Jose Mourinho’s side thought they had taken an early lead when the deadly duo of Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son combined for a goal that was adjudged to be offside.

Both sides traded opportunities in search of the opener, with Son going close for Tottenham while Mane was repeatedly thwarted by Hugo Lloris.

Firmino eventually broke the deadlock deep into first-half added time when the Brazilian striker poked home a cross from Mane to hand Liverpool a 1-0 lead.

A frantic second half saw both teams trade goals in two minutes. Alexander-Arnold dispatched a rebound from Mane’s saved shot to double Liverpool’s lead while Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg thundered in a 25-yard strike on 49 minutes to give Tottenham the much-needed hope to stage a comeback.

While VAR struck again to deny Mohamed Salah a goal, citing handball in the buildup, the impressive Mane made it 3-1 on 65 minutes with a half volley.

Tottenham had lost their last five league matches against Liverpool, and the visiting EPL champions did not allow the home side another chance of a possible comeback, consigning the London side to a record sixth defeat in a row against the Reds.

The win also ended Liverpool’s run of 482 minutes and 93 shots without an EPL goal since Mané scored against West Brom in December 2020.

Liverpool return back into the top four with 37 points while Tottenham drop to the sixth position with 33 points.