London: Liverpool needed an afternoon to calm their Premier League title jitters after a couple of stumbles and thanks to an obliging Bournemouth side they got their wish as a 3-0 victory lifted them back to the top of the table.
Goals by Sadio Mane and Georginio Wijnaldum before the break and another for Mohamed Salah three minutes after it allowed Liverpool to finish the match in cruise control.
It put Juergen Klopp’s side three points above Manchester City, although the defending champions will reclaim top spot if they beat Chelsea at home, Sunday.
Earlier in another match played on the day, Manchester United’s incredible surge showed no sign of slowing down as they won the day’s early kick-off 3-0 at second-bottom Fulham who sank even deeper into relegation trouble.
French midfielder Paul Pogba scored twice with Anthony Martial also on target as United made it 10 wins and a draw in the 11 matches since Ole Gunnar Solskjaer became interim manager after Jose Mourinho’s sacking. The win lifted United into fourth spot with 51 points and they will stay there if Chelsea lose to City.
Poor performances in draws against Leicester and West Ham, results which allowed Man City to eradicate their lead, had raised questions about Liverpool’s nerve as they chase a first English title since 1990.
Had their keeper Alisson Becker not parried out Ryan Fraser’s shot in the second minute, it could have been a fraught afternoon in the Anfield sunshine.
But once Mane headed his side in front, Liverpool assumed control. Wijnaldum’s deft lob over Artur Boruc doubled their lead and Salah got in on the act after good link-up play with Roberto Firmino.
“We were not happy with the performances from the previous two games and struggled a bit with set-pieces,” Klopp said.
Reuters