Tension and Nervousness Envelop Liverpool Towards the Finish Line

LONDON, SUNDAY — Unexpectedly, Liverpool's unbeaten record in 26 matches in the English Premier League was ended by Fulham. In the week 31 match on Sunday (6/4/2025) at Craven Cottage Stadium, "The Reds" suffered a 2-3 defeat, failing to widen their lead at the top of the standings.

Initially taking the lead through a powerful strike by midfielder Alexis Mac Allister from outside the penalty box in the 14th minute, Liverpool was countered with three goals by the home team. Ryan Sessegnon (23’), Alex Iwobi (32’), and Rodrigo Muniz (37’) turned the game around for Fulham.

A single goal from substitute forward Luis Diaz in the 72nd minute was not enough for Liverpool to secure any points. This marked the second defeat for Arne Slot's squad in the English Premier League. Additionally, Liverpool's unbeaten record in away league games finally came to an end.

Although the match initially proceeded well in the first 15 minutes, tension and nervousness were evident in the performance of the Red squad, particularly in defensive situations. The three goals conceded by Caoimhin Kelleher stemmed from errors made by the defenders.

Fulham's equalizing goal began with an error by right-back Curtis Jones, who inadvertently passed the ball to Sessegnon. Subsequently, left-back Andrew Robertson also made a clearance that benefited Fulham.

Iwobi was able to control the ball in the Liverpool penalty box. His shot hit Jones' leg, causing the ball to twist and was difficult for Kelleher to anticipate.

On Fulham's third goal, it was Virgil van Dijk's turn to lose in a ball contest against Muniz. After failing to take the ball, Van Dijk was also too weak to apply pressure on Muniz. Muniz took advantage of this situation to score his eighth goal in the English Premier League this season.

According to Slot, his team received a wake-up call from Fulham. The defeat against Fulham, he said, highlighted Liverpool's obligation to play flawlessly in the remaining seven games to ensure the championship title does not slip from their grasp.

"(Blunders) It can happen, especially when you play a good team like Fulham. If you make a mistake, they have the quality to punish you. We created a lot of chances in the second half, but we lacked time (to score more goals)," Slot told Sky Sports.

He added that the series of mistakes displayed at Craven Cottage was not caused by fatigue following the Merseyside derby against Everton on Thursday (3/4/2025) WIB.

"We had four days off and have shown on many occasions that we can cope with that. I don't think the mistakes we made were related to fatigue," said the Dutch tactician.

The match against Everton was the last game played by Mohamed Salah and his friends in midweek this season. In the remaining seven matches of the 2024-2025 competition campaign, Liverpool only play matches on weekends.

Liverpool failed to capitalize on the help of their neighbors, Everton, who held Arsenal to a 1-1 draw on Saturday (5/4/2025). On the contrary, Fulham helped fellow London team, Arsenal, to increase their chances of winning the Premier League.

Liverpool's gap with Arsenal was reduced by one point in week 31. The Reds still have 73 points, while the Gunners have collected 62 points.

If they do not want to regret their failure to win the title this season, Liverpool cannot afford to lose any more points. They will face three more games, which could be disastrous if they are careless, against West Ham United, Leicester City, and Tottenham Hotspur.

After that, Liverpool will challenge the two best teams in London this season. They will visit Chelsea's home ground, Stamford Bridge Stadium, then host Arsenal at Anfield Stadium in the 36th week. The two matches could be the deciding factor in determining Liverpool's fate as the Premier League champion this season or wasting the championship opportunity in front of their eyes.

"It's not the first time we had a difficult first half. Normally we can overcome that because of our mentality and the fitness of the players who were affected by the subs. Today our fight was not enough," Slot said.

"All the players have to realise that the only way we can win games is constant effort. We have one week to prepare for West Ham. Only hard work all the time can help us win this season," he continued.

Meanwhile, Fulham maintain their hopes of fighting for a European ticket. They displaced Brighton & Hove Albion into eighth place.

Not only the Europa Conference League or Europa League, Fulham can also still reach the top four zone to appear in the Champions League.

Fulham manager Marco Silva praised his players' reaction in responding to Liverpool's early goal with three goals. For Silva, Fulham deserved the three points because they performed better than the league leaders.

"All the energy I asked for before the game was shown by the players. We played with great energy, high tempo and our pressing was very good. Their two centre-backs were under pressure for most of the game," Silva was quoted as saying by the BBC.