Liverpool drop points again in draw against Leeds

Liverpool were unable to capitalise on dropped points by Arsenal and Chelsea as the Reds were held to a frustrating draw against Leeds United. Here is how it happened...

The setup

The most noteworthy piece of information regarding the team news was that Mohamed Salah found himself dropped again by Arne Slot for the third consecutive match.

This is despite his good record against the hosts, including nine goals and one assist in six appearances against the Yorkshire club, most notably netting a hat-trick in the opening game of the 2020/21 season in a dramatic 4-3 win.

Alongside this, Slot named his youngest ever starting eleven since taking over as Reds boss in 2024, changing both full-backs with both Kerkez and Bradley returning into the starting line-up. Jones and Ekitike also returned to the side; the latter replacing Isak up front for Liverpool. 

The 90 minutes

Once again, the first half failed to bring much goalmouth action for either side in the opening 45 minutes. The Reds had noticeably more possession and created the better chances within the first period.

The best opportunity of the first period fell to Jones, whose fantastic curling effort rattled off the crossbar. However, neither side managed to accumulate a single shot on target during the first period, with Slot’s side once again looking lethargic and lacking confidence in front of goal. 

However, the second half would prove to be a different story; three minutes in, Leeds defender Rodon’s stray pass was pounced on by Ekitke before forcing his way past Ampadu and slotting it past Perri to put Liverpool ahead.

The Reds quickly doubled their lead inside just two minutes later, after Connor Bradley won the ball back on the right hand side before sending in a delicious cross towards Ekitike who managed to squeeze the ball in for his second goal of the afternoon.

Following a lengthy VAR check the goal stood, allowing Ekitke to celebrate netting his eighth goal of the season and his first brace since joining from Eintracht Frankfurt in the summer. 

With 20 minutes to go, Konate dove into a needless challenge on Gnonto near the byline, with referee Anthony Taylor originally deciding against pointing to the spot for a penalty.

After a pitchside review, however, it was decided that the offence did constitute a foul. With that, Leeds had their penalty, which ex-Evertonian striker Calvert-Lewin calmy dispatched, pulling one back for the home side.

Just as the Reds netted in quick succession, it took just two minutes after the penalty for their opponents to find their equaliser. Leeds' second-half substitutes Aaronson and Gnonto combined neatly on the left-hand side, eventually finding Stach inside the Liverpool box, who was allowed to quickly turn inside the area without challenge and place his effort into the left side of the net.

With the contest fast resembling a basketball match, the Reds pegged Leeds back five minutes later. Gravenberch drove forward powerfully before playing the ball across, which, after a clever dummy by Mac Allister, found Szoboszlai, who took one touch and calmly placed his effort into the far corner to put Liverpool back in front.

Unfortunately for The Reds, the points would be shared as Leeds found a leveller deep into the nine minutes of stoppage time. A quick succession of corners followed with Stach’s curled delivery finding its way to the back post, where Tanaka stayed composed and fired in an equaliser with three minutes of stoppage time to play. Full-time 3-3.

The aftermath

A win yesterday would’ve seen Liverpool climb to fifth place in the league, but this result has left them three places worse off. However, they are still only two points off the top four.

The big question coming out of the game today will be regarding Slot’s job and whether this recent run of results has been good enough for him to remain in the dugout.

Despite not losing in his past three games, many supporters will argue whether some of these draws, especially against the likes of Sunderland and Leeds, are just as bad.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Mentality Giants (@mentality.giants)

With every game becoming a must-win, Slot has another chance to prove his quality as Liverpool travel to the San Siro for a Champions League tie against Inter Milano on Tuesday.