At Elland Road, Liverpool’s victory over Leeds was tarnished by a devastating injury to Harvey Elliott Louise Taylor.
Sun, September 12, 2021, 18:50 BST 560
Anyone looking for a proper description of the word “formidable” can watch a video of the day Mohamed Salah scored his 100th Premier League goal and Jürgen Klopp’s Liverpool declared their title ambitions. Despite Fabinho’s midfield omnipotence, Trent Alexander-Arnold’s uplifting interpretation of the right-back job, and Sadio Mané’s attacking prowess, there was a palpable sense of vulnerability in the mild West Yorkshire air.
Harvey Elliott, 18, went from a promising midfielder looking at home alongside Fabinho and Thiago Alcântara to a scared youngster clutching a brutally dislocated left ankle in the second half.
By the time Leeds were down to ten men following Pascal Struijk’s punishment for a reckless, albeit unintentionally injurious, attack on Elliott, Marcelo Bielsa’s squad were already on their way to defeat, leaving them still searching for their first league win of the season.
While Leeds’ offensive bravery and bloody-minded unwillingness to collapse in the face of superior opponents were admirable, there was far too much cheap forfeiting of possession on the part of a home team whose journey to Newcastle on Friday night has suddenly taken on unexpected importance.
Deep down, home fans probably feared the worst when Salah scored with a first-time swipe of his left foot, the Egyptian arriving in precisely the right spot at precisely the right time to rocket Alexander-Arnold’s near-post cross beyond Illan Meslier.
That cameo was a response to Leeds fans who had enjoyed serenading Alexander-Arnold with choruses that compared him unfavorably to Kyle Walker. That song stayed in their heads as Jol Matip burst out of center defense, swapping passes with Salah and playing in the right back position.
It was one in a string of bad luck for Bielsa’s former Barcelona left-back Junior Firpo, but up until that point, a thrillingly tense first half had been reasonably level. Indeed, prior to Salah’s goal, the unstoppable Kalvin Phillips had the upper hand in his fight with Thiago, dispossessing the Spain midfielder and launching counterattacks at a couple of potentially crucial times.
Klopp was forced to watch his step when Fabinho was booked for a late foul on Rodrigo.
He didn’t have to be. Fabinho would emerge as one of the game’s top players, as Liverpool quickly took control, pressing effectively and putting Phillips on the bench. They would have doubled their lead if Salah had not been a yard offside when Thiago headed home his beautiful chipped cross.
If Leeds were relieved to see that effort rejected, Bielsa’s issues were only getting worse. Apart from Liam Cooper, who had an early booking for fouling Mané, Diego Llorente hobbled off, hampered, and Alisson was underworked in goal.
Meslier was not precisely under constant attack at the time, but the way Matip and Virgil van Dijk – oozing comfort with every interception – succeeded in second-guessing Patrick Bamford’s every attacking manoeuvre boded poorly for the team.
