Liverpool sweep Leeds and clamp down on Man City
Liverpool reduced the gap with leaders Manchester City to 3 points, beating Leeds United 6-0 on Wednesday night, in a postponed premier league match.
Liverpool's Mohamed Salah (15 and 35 penalty kicks), Joel Matip (30), Sadio Mane (80 and 90) and Virgil van Dijk (90+3) scored for Liverpool.
With this victory, Liverpool increased their tally to 60 points in second place, three points behind Manchester City, while Leeds United remained 23 points in 15th place
Liverpool coach Jurgen Klopp relied on the usual 4-3-3 plan, with Joel Matip standing alongside Virgil van Dijk deep in the back line with back-rowers Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson, Fabinho playing behind Thiago Alcantara and Curtis Jones, while the front line was from Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Luis Diaz.
On the other hand, Leeds coach Marcelo Bielsa resorted to a 4-1-4-1 play, with the back line of Stuart Dallas, Luke Ayling, Pascal Stroyek and Junior Ferbo, Adam Forshaw standing as a quarterback, with Ravinia and Jack Harrison on the wings, while Mathieu klitsch and Rodrigo Mourinho tried to move behind striker Daniel James.
The series of chances of the game began in the fourth minute, when Mane passed the ball to Colombian Diaz on the left side, the latter disposing of two defenders before he hit a ball with his own goal that hit Manny and took off the goal.
The referee awarded a penalty to Liverpool after a hand touch on Dallas, and Salah successfully executed the kick, opening the scoring in the 15th minute.
Liverpool continued their attack, with Diaz getting rid of Ayling on the left side, before a weak ball easily dominated goalkeeper Mesler in the 23rd minute.
Diaz's pass to his teammate Jones arrived inside the Leeds penalty area and, although unattended, he was shot in the 28th minute.
The referee cancelled out a goal for the guest team in the 28th minute, due to the infiltration of his owner Ravinia, and one minute later a joint play between Diaz and Mane resulted in the arrival of the ball to the back Robertson, who fired a shot countered by the goalkeeper.
Liverpool quickly added the second goal in the 30th minute, when Matip went from behind, before exchanging the ball with Salah and confidently putting the ball inside the goal.
Mane singled out Leeds before being impressed by Ayling, and the referee awarded a penalty after using video technology, and Salah successfully executed the second kick in the 35th minute.
Fabinho almost scored the fourth goal for Liverpool in the 41st minute, when he received a ball from Van Dijk after the latter followed up with a free kick, but knocked it down next to the right-hand post.
Salah singled out Leeds in stoppage time in the first half, after a long pass from Arnold, and tried to drop the ball over the goalkeeper, but the back-rower Ferbo pushed it away before crossing the goal line.
He missed the second half for the accelerated pace of the first half, so the play tended to calm down, until the 59th minute, when the ball was listened to Salah, and he hit it with a curved left, Mesler expected its movement and easily controlled it.
Salah exchanged the ball with Jones before shooting over Leeds in the 62nd minute, and the visitors responded in the 66th minute when Ravinia went off from the right, before hitting a ball that Liverpool goalkeeper Alison Baker had no difficulty stopping.
Jordan Henderson entered Liverpool's squad in Alcantara's place, and Ferbo passed from the left, before sending a cross into the box, followed by his teammate Dallas Bimene away from goal in the 70th minute.
Jones exchanged the ball with Robertson before directing a shot that Mesler removed with his body in the 74th minute, and then Liverpool managed to add the fourth goal in the 80th minute, after Salah passed a cross that reached Henderson on the right side, putting it last in front of the unattended Mane, who had no difficulty depositing it in the net.
The crowd thought the game was over, but Liverpool managed to add the fifth goal in the last minute, when substitute Divock Origi followed a pass in the left side, and tried to shoot it into the net but goalkeeper Mesler narrowed the corner, reaching the ball to Mane who followed it from a short distance into the net.
In stoppage time, Van Dijk put his name on the list of sixth-goal scorers, with a powerful header from a corner.