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Liverpool suffered a second straight loss at Anfield as they were beaten 1-0 by Brighton & Hove Albion on Wednesday night.
Steven Alzate secured the only goal of the match for the visitors at 55th minute when he came in from close up after Dan Burn’s header back into the danger zone.
The Reds pressed for a leveler in the final stages, but were unable to take down their opponents, who were hoping for victory.
Team news …
The roster confirmed two changes for Liverpool since the weekend’s win at West Ham United.
With Alisson Becker ruled out due to illness, Caoimhin Kelleher started in goal, while Roberto Firmino replaced Divock Origi in attack. New signing Ben Davies was on the bench.
The action…
After back-to-back road victories at Tottenham Hotspur and West Ham United had put them back on the winning track in the Premier League, Liverpool started at Anfield with the aim of continuing that sequence at home.
They also almost made a perfect start. Jordan Henderson’s forward caught Mohamed Salah’s dart in the area. The forward controlled it before going over Robert Sánchez’s crossbar.
The hosts dominated possession in the opening exchanges; however, Brighton created a chance with 24 left when Neal Maupay ran into the area and Andy Robertson blocked a shot. The ball spun in the path of Burn, who veered off the target.
Solly March then threw an effort over the bar as the Seagulls grew in confidence as the half progressed, but ultimately finished without an indentation on the scoresheet.
The champions began the second period with intention, and Firmino’s powerful blow inside the area was thwarted by a Lewis Dunk block in the opening minutes.
The Brazilian had a deflected effort deflected soon after, but Brighton took the lead 10 minutes after the restart.
A ball towards the back post was received by Burn, who headed it towards the center. Nathaniel Phillips’ touch bounced off Maupay before hitting Alzate and finding the net.
Liverpool’s response saw Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Origi replaced by Georginio Wijnaldum and Xherdan Shaqiri shortly after the hour.
The Reds then created their best opportunity of the night with an incisive game that opened up their hosts; however, Salah deviated inches from Trent Alexander-Arnold’s low kick.
The hosts had Kelleher to thank for denying Brighton a second when he pushed Pascal Gross’s low curling iron from the edge of the box.
At the other end, Salah crashed a powerful effort into Yves Bissouma inside the area and Firmino fired a dip shot off the post.
The pressure mounted on Seagull’s goal, though Kelleher was needed to deny Leandro Trossard’s push as the visitors claimed victory.
Statistics …
