Liverpool comfortably beat Tottenham Hotspur 5-1 at Anfield to secure its place as 2024/25 Premier League champions, with the midfield and attackers putting in excellent displays.
But everything didn’t go quite as planned with Dominic Solanke heading in after 12 minutes to temporarily put a lid on expectant Anfield atmosphere.
But it lasted just a few minutes until Luis Diaz turned in Dominic Szoboszlai’s cross to restore parity – after a quick VAR check. From there, Liverpool was relentless. Cody Gakpo turned in from Ryan Gravenberch’s back-post pass – again the offside flag was raised, this time correctly. It mattered little; sooner after the Dutch midfielder regained possession at the edge of the box and Alexis Mac Allister unleashed a sublime left-foot rocket that flew beyond Guglielmo Vicario.
It was three by the end of the first half as Liverpool again capitalized on some slack Liverpool defending. This time, Lucas Bergvall’s weak clearance from a corner was pounced upon by Gakpo, whose unorthodox and quick-witted finished curled in past an unsighted Vicario.
Mohamed Salah was always going to get his name in on the act and he made it 4-1 after half-time when he cut inside and unleashed an unstoppable shot. He even tried to claim Liverpool’s fifth, but replays showed the ball clearly cross the line after Destiny Udogie’s touch.
Winners
Well everyone, really. But Salah getting back among the goals earned one of the biggest cheers of the day – he also set the record for the most goals involvements in a 38-game season. Szoboszlai, Diaz and Gakpo were also excellent, but it was Mac Allister who starred in midfield. Darwin Nune getting a run out from the bench will have boosted his morale after a tough few weeks as well.
Losers
Conor Bradley missed out on a place in Sunday’s title win due to a knock he sustained in midweek. While not a serious problem, it meant the boyhood Red wasn’t part of the squad as his team was crowned champions. His absence won’t convince those concerned about Bradley’s injury record that he is ready to be first-choice right-back next season. Meanwhile, it was another bruising day for Tottenham once again, who was naive and second best in every department.
Player ratings
Alisson (6). Couldn’t get anywhere near Solanke’s header, and the few saves he had to make after that stage were routine.
Trent Alexander-Arnold (7). Starting a league match for nearly two months, the right-back looked at ease. He played repeated long, accurate passes to teammates, including several down the line for Salah. It was Alexander-Arnold’s pass to Salah hat resulted in Udogie inadvertently tapping into his own goal.
Ibrahima Konate (7). Made a big tackle to stop Mathys Tel scoring in the 42nd minute and carried a threat from set-pieces.
Virgil van Dijk (6). Was unsettled once or twice by Solanke in the early stages, but responded well. The defender becomes the first Dutchman to captain a Premier League side to the title.
Andy Robertson (6). Serenaded by the Anfield crowd at the start of the second half after a tough campaign. Robertson put in a solid display as he returned to the side and dealt well with most of Spurs’ attacks down its right.
Ryan Gravenberch (8). Didn’t have to worry about much defending and tended to motor forward in possession. He set up Mac Allister’s pile driver and also the offside Gakpo goal.
Alexis Mac Allister (9). Outstanding from the World Cup winner, who produced one of his best displays in red. Mac Allister was everywhere, a constant presence in Liverpool’s pressing game and also excellent on the ball. His left-foot strike put Liverpool in the lead, while his range of passing and speed when moving the ball bamboozled Spurs.
Dominik Szoboszlai (8). His runs from deep caused Spurs real issues, as they did in December’s meeting. Szoboszlai linked well with teammates, was dynamic in possession and provided the assist for Diaz and Salah’s goal.
Mohamed Salah (8). He was destined to end his recent lean spell in front of goal against Tottenham.. His 62nd minute was the moment fans craved as he set the record for the goal involvements in a 38-game season, celebrating with a selfie in front of the Kop End.
Luis Diaz (8). His habit of dropping deep caused Spurs repeated issues and contributed to Liverpool’s fluid shape. He grabbed the first goal, but like a few of Slot’s soldiers was also relentless out of possession. His levels dropped a little after the break, but the forward continued his outstanding recent form.
Cody Gakpo (8). This was the Dutchman’s best performance in months and his direct runs and proved hugely effective. Gakpo nearly scored a brilliant overhead kick in 10th minute and then netted with an unorthodox side-foot effort to give Liverpool a 3-1 lead in the first half.
Substitutes
Curtis Jones ().
Diogo Jota ().
Harvey Elliott ().
Wataru Endo ().
