West Ham 0 Liverpool 2: Salah nets penalty and tees up brilliant Oxlade-Chamberlain goal as Reds cruise 19 points clear – The Sun
JURGEN KLOPP claims his team are knackered and need a rest.
After bagging a 15th successive Premier League win, Liverpool are now 19 points clear and look invincible regardless of how much is left in the tank.
While they are sleepwalking their way to the title, West Ham are doing the same towards relegation.
They remain in a semi-conscious state and are now in real danger of suffering relegation and the financial disasters which will come with it.
David Moyes’ team initially put up a half-decent fight but Klopp’s team were so relentless and so good, the result was never really in doubt even though Manuel Lanzini wasted a chance to level for 1-1 and then helped the visitors make it 2-0.
For Liverpool, they are now 41 games unbeaten in the League in a stunning run going back to last season and are eight short of Arsenal’s record.
And right now, it looks as though only a super-human team could beat Liverpool and this season, there are certainly none of those in English football as the contenders are proving to be a right shower.
CRAZY SEASON
A year ago after 24 games, Liverpool were top with 61 points, five clear of Manchester CIty.
While they let the title slip, history will certainly not be repeating itself and they reached the 70-point mark thanks to a first half penalty from Mo Salah and second half strike from Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
For Klopp, this was his 38th fixture in all competitions, the length of a Premier League campaign, which gives you some idea of Liverpool’s slightly crazy season.
That number does not include the Carabao Cup trip to Aston Villa as it was played by the under-23s who will now be wheeled out for the FA Cup replay at home to Shrewsbury.
Klopp, who paid the price for not taking Sunday’s game in Shropshire more seriously, was back to pretty much full strength apart from the injured Sadio Mane.
Yet they struggled to break down the stubborn home side who gave a debut to Jeremy Ngakia who impressed Moyes when he watched the club’s table-topping under-23s beat Manchester United 2-0.
Playing at right wing-back, Ngakia put in a decent performance and some of his passing was excellent.
Yet each time West Ham pushed forward, it was when Liverpool looked at their most dangerous on the counter attack.
Andy Robertson went on the rampage and lifted the ball over fit-again Lukasz Fabianski although while Issa Diop hacked the ball away, it was drifting wide.
Liverpool took the lead with their first shot on target, a penalty awarded after Issa Diop bundled over Divock Origi. Bobby Firmino deserves a lot of credit for creating the chance when it looked as though he was about to lose the ball.
Taking a particularly long run-up, Salah sent Fabianski the wrong way for his 16th goal of the season.
West Ham had created nothing despite doing okay and while a decent chance fell to Lanzini at the start of the second half, he could only manage a hopeless scuffed shot straight at Alisson.
HAMMERS NEED TO WAKE UP
A matter of seconds later, Liverpool tore up the other end and keeper Fabianski did extremely well to get his fingertips to a low shot from Firmino.
Yet again, West Ham did not learn from that lesson which is one reason why they remain up to their necks in it. They really do need to wake up.
Following a West Ham corner, Mark Noble and Arthur Masuaku got in each other’s way and against a team like Liverpool, there is only going to be one end result.
Salah used the outside of his boot to find Oxlade-Chamberlain, he brushed off Lanzini’s mosquito-style challenge and then with his third touch, the former Arsenal midfielder swept the ball past Fabianski.
Trent Alexander-Arnold did his best to score an own goal but was denied by the post, and the woodwork also stopped Salah from making it 3-0 at the other end.
So, the most predictable title race in living memory continues and instead, we will look at the battle for the top four and the scrap to avoid relegation.
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