Liverpool and Brighton failed to overcome each other at the Amex
Simon Adingra opened the scoring before Mo Salah scored two quick goals
Lewis Dunk saved a point for the hosts late on with a thumping header
It wasn’t the anniversary present Jurgen Klopp would have wanted, but it was clearly better than his team’s last two trips to the south coast. Brighton responded to earn a deserved draw against Liverpool after Mo Salah scored a brace.
Klopp, celebrating eight years at the club, described this match last season as the worst performance of his many years as manager, beating Liverpool 3-0.
They went here for a cheap goal that brought back memories of that dark day.
But they managed to regain some respect when Salah scored twice for Liverpool, putting behind them the monumental VAR mess that dominated the discussion for a week after the defeat to Spurs.
However, they could not expect a win as Brighton captain Lewis Dunk equalized late in the match. the game. So it was Roberto De Zerbi’s turn to denounce VAR on another bad day for the officials.
De Zerbi felt his side were denied a penalty due to a penalty, while Albion midfielder Pascal Gross may have seen red for dragging down Dominik Szoboszlai as he was the last man to to come back.
De Zerbi, who had been in turmoil for most of the afternoon with anger over one thing or another, saw his side take the lead after 20 minutes following an incredibly sloppy move from Liverpool.
Simon Adingra scored the opener after capitalizing on a Liverpool error in midfield.
Liverpool managed just one point against Brighton while Mohamed Salah scored twice at the Amex.
Salah scored his second penalty as Liverpool took the lead before half-time
Virgil Van Dijk slowed down the running game and made an ill-prepared pass to former Albion midfielder Alexis Mac Allister.
The World Cup winner, standing in front of his own goal, was thwarted by Simon Adingra and the Ivory Coast winger shot past a poorly positioned Alisson.
Adingra scored fifteen goals on loan at sister club Union Saint-Gilloise, the Belgian club that defeated Liverpool in the Europa League on Thursday last season, and his pace and directness caused Klopp all sorts of problems .
Another dominant performance came from Carlos Baleba, signed from Lille for £23.2 million in the summer.
Mac Allister received warm applause before the match, but Brighton moved on and Baleba is fine. Here they do it like this: one moves on, the other resigns.
But for all the promise of a good start for the Seagulls, they had only themselves to blame as Liverpool scored two goals in six minutes and somehow took the lead at half-time.
The first goal came from a careless error by captain Lewis Dunk, who gave away the ball cheaply in his own half and had to pay for it.
Liverpool exchanged clever passes and Darwin Nunez found Harvey Elliott. The Englishman moved aside to allow Salah to finish.
If the space left to Liverpool for this goal was worrying, the second goal was even more alarming.
Bert Verbruggen, the goalkeeper who started four times with Jason Steele, gave away the ball cheaply.
Pascal Gross had to drag Dominik Szoboszlai to the ground after being stitched up by the goalkeeper and referee Anthony Taylor pointed to the penalty spot.
It looked a little soft, but Salah didn’t care as he stepped forward and fired confidently from 12 yards.
Many pointed out that Gross was the last man to turn down a clear chance to score and should have received a red card as well as a penalty. It was another bad day for the officials, leaving both managers frustrated at times.
Elliott, making a rare start for Liverpool in midfield, was taken off at half-time after perhaps being outplayed by Baleba and Gross in central areas.
Ryan Gravenberch entered the match and should have scored a few minutes after coming on, but hit the crossbar from close range.
Brighton thought they should have been awarded a penalty when Kaoru Mitoma knocked the ball out of Van Dijk’s hand from close range. He clearly hit the Dutchman’s arm, but according to referee Taylor, nothing happened.
De Zerbi received a yellow card for his protests, in which he cited footage of the incident shown on his coaching team’s iPad.
“We want a replay,” Brighton fans shouted as Klopp acted as peacemaker between De Zerbi and fourth official Chris Kavanagh.
But a few minutes later, the Italian team equalized. Captain Dunk headed home a perfect cross after Mac Allister March’s foul. From that point on, they looked like the team most likely to score again and they should have done so when Joao Pedro fired home from close range.
Share or comment on this article: Brighton 2-2 Liverpool: Seagulls captain Lewis Dunk earns honor even on the south coast with his late point-blank shot – as Mohamed Salah’s first-half double cannot power the Reds towards victory
