Liverpool were punished for their profligacy as Crysencio Summerville steered struggling Leeds United to a late 2-1 win at Anfield.
Crysencio Summerville’s dramatic 89th-minute winner condemned Liverpool to a second successive Premier League defeat as Leeds United left Anfield with a shock 2-1 victory.
Jurgen Klopp’s men were beaten by bottom-of-the-table Nottingham Forest last weekend and Summerville’s late goal meant the Reds lost back-to-back games against teams in the relegation zone for the first time since March 2012.
Liverpool started a tough game early on when Joe Gomez gifted Rodrigo Moreno with the opener, although it didn’t take long for Mohamed Salah to restore parity.
The Reds were even more dominant in the second half but could not find a way through the outstanding Illan Meslier and Summerville – on the eve of his 21st birthday – prodded home at the end to salvage a potentially vital victory under fire from Jesse. Marsh and Leeds.
The game was not even four minutes old when Gomez went wild and sent his back pass beyond Alisson and Rodrigo was on hand to make the save.
Liverpool hit back 10 minutes later; Salah left with a similarly easy finish from Andy Robertson’s left-hand delivery.
Leeds were almost in front again soon after when Brendan Aaronson saw his volley hit the crossbar, but Liverpool’s dominance continued to grow.
In the last 30 minutes, they increased the pressure and forced Meslier into a flurry of saves. He rushed to thwart Darwin Nunez when he was on one, before also making a smart save from Jordan Henderson.
The young Frenchman then tipped over Nunez’s long-range effort and with five minutes left, there was a crucial block from Salah.
Leeds took full advantage of Meslier’s heroics as Summerville instinctively slotted past Alisson at the other end to seal the Whites’ first win at Anfield in more than 21 years.
Liverpool vs Leeds player ratings – Premier League
1. Liverpool (4-3-1-2)
GK: Alisson – 6/10 – Played his role in the calamitous opener but swiftly recovered to make a customary glut of crucial stops.
RB: Trent Alexander-Arnold – 6/10 – Rediscovered the surgical incision of his passing game, though the frequency of his slicing passes faded as the match wore on.
CB: Joe Gomez – 5/10 – Produced a commanding tackle seconds before setting Rodrigo up for the opener in a snapshot of a display of extremes.
CB: Virgil van Dijk – 5/10 – Fell to his first Premier League defeat at Anfield since joining Liverpool as he was caught dozing at the death.
LB: Andy Robertson – 7/10 – Given the freedom of the left flank to steam up and down the touchline.
CM: Harvey Elliott – 4/10 – Failed to exert a lasting impact on proceedings before he was removed within an hour.
CM: Fabinho – 2/10 – A shadow of his former self, watching on like an uninterested bystander as Leeds charged forward, barely bothering to get out of the Brazilian’s way.
CM: Thiago Alcantara – 5/10 – Peppered his performance with some silky cameos but was erratic with his adventurous passing attempts.
AM: Roberto Firmino – 7/10 – Floating menacingly between the lines, knitting together Liverpool’s play in the final third with a flurry of flicks and feints.
ST: Mohamed Salah – 6/10 – Reacted sharply to hook his equaliser over the line but wasn’t at his clinical best for much of the match.
ST: Darwin Nunez – 5/10 – Offered an option bursting into the ample space behind by the stretched opposition but lacked composure in front of goal.
SUB: Curtis Jones (60′ for Elliott) – 7/10 – Injected some thrust and urgency into Liverpool’s midfield.
SUB: Jordan Henderson (60′ for Fabinho) – 5/10
SUB: James Milner (79′ for Alexander-Arnold) – N/A
Manager: Jurgen Klopp – 4/10 – Looked a little shell-shocked at his side’s start, going to bark instructions but no words came out. Recovered his voice to send on Jones and tweak the width of Liverpool’s attack after the break but with little lasting effect.
2. Leeds (4-2-3-1)
GK: Illan Meslier – 8/10 – Rapidly off his line to twice smother Nunez, bailing out his captain the second time in a busy but brilliant evening.
RB: Rasmus Kristensen – 6/10 – Struggled against Robertson in his own half but tested the left-back going the other way.
CB: Robin Koch – 5/10 – Took a front-foot approach to deal with Nunez, who still managed to get away from him regularly.
CB: Liam Cooper – 3/10 – Escaped two blunders on either side of half-time in a fortuitous individual display.
LB: Pascal Struijk – 5/10 – Held a more restrained position than his opposite full-back.
CM: Tyler Adams – 7/10 – A pest – in the best possible way – in midfield, buzzing around off the ball and shovelling it forward in possession.
CM: Marc Roca – 6/10 – Kept his passing simple, spending more time scurrying after the ball than stroking it around the pitch.
AM: Brenden Aaronson – 7/10 – A painful thorn in Liverpool’s side, buzzing between the cracks of a side lacking confidence.
RW: Jack Harrison – 6/10 – Uncompromisingly direct as he drove forward at any given opportunity.
ST: Rodrigo – 6/10 – The Spaniard has been guilty of teeing up opponents with wayward passes but benefitted from one for once.
LW: Crysencio Summerville – 6/10 – Skirted around the fringes of the contest before popping up with a crucial prod.
SUB: Patrick Bamford (52′ for Rodrigo) – 5/10 – A poor first touch let a Leeds breakaway rapidly fizzle out, squandering a fleeting sight of goal.
SUB: Wilfried Gnonto (72′ for Harrison) – 6/10
SUB: Luke Ayling (90′ for Summervilla) – N/A
Manager: Jesse Marsch – 7/10 – Leeds emphatically did not adhere to Marsch’s instructions for a “disciplined and compact” display. His side was porous but hardly poor, going toe-to-toe with the Reds all game.
