Key events
61 mins: Neto protests after Gravenberch nicks the ball away from him on the edge of the area, having dropped back to assist Alexander-Arnold.
59 mins: Liverpool advance and Nunez finds Salah, who sweeps the ball beautifully over to the left flank. Gakpo dallies on the ball, reducing his options, and sends a tentative effort well over the bar.
58 mins: Renato makes a break through midfield but is dispossessed by Jones, who then draws a foul from Caicedo …
56 mins: Neto hooks in a cross towards Palmer, gambolling in like a gazelle, but Kelleher gets down to smother the ball.
Like a frustrated Fifa player, Maresca responds with three changes in one go – Badiashile, Enzo Fernandez and Renato Veiga are on for James, Tosin and Lavia. Veiga, who is becoming something of a fan favourite, will play on the left with Malo Gusto moving to right-back.
A crafty bit of attacking play, with three Liverpool players offside as Salah whips in a cross – but not Curtis Jones, who times his run perfectly to nick the ball past Sanchez and inside the far post. He’s been Liverpool’s standout player so far today.
GOAL! Liverpool 2-1 Chelsea (Jones 52′)
Well, that didn’t last long. Liverpool restore their lead in a matter of moments through Curtis Jones!
50 mins: That was simple but so effective, the kind of move Chelsea had been threatening to put together throughout the first half, helped by Liverpool sitting much higher up the field.
GOAL! Liverpool 1-1 Chelsea (Jackson 47′)
Konate was playing him onside, and the goal stands. Jackson has his fifth goal of the season, and Chelsea are back in the game!
Goal? Caicedo plays in Jackson, who spins in between Konate and Van Dijk, runs on and slots coolly past Kelleher – but the flag is up. Replays, though, tell a different story …
Peep!
We’re back under way, with Pedro Neto on for Jadon Sancho. I’m slightly surprised as Sancho had been lively – if well-marshalled by Alexander-Arnold down the right.
In other news …
At Anfield where David James has just saved two penalties from a young child in a charity shootout. He is being rightly booed
— Will Unwin (@Will_Unwin) October 20, 2024
“Out in France and the commentators are curious as to how a grey-area decision at best can be overturned by VAR,” writes Ben Jones. “The only thing clear and obvious about that challenge by Sánchez was that he was always going to scythe through Curtis Jones.”
I’m not sure why Sanchez getting a touch negates him then going through Jones like Hulk Hogan through a stack of barrels. Mike Dean himself said the same (in so many words), but then changed his mind once he saw Brooks heading to the pitchside monitor.
“It’s moments like these that prove beyond doubt that Curtis Jones is head over heels in love with playing for Liverpool,” writes Peter Oh. “I thought it was a flippin’ foul.”
Half time: Liverpool 1-0 Chelsea
So, one Liverpool penalty given – and scored by Mohamed Salah – and another overturned by VAR. Chelsea have been in the game, with Cole Palmer going close late in the half, but dodgy defending has been their downfall so far. More soon …
52 mins: We play on, thanks to the delay in checking the penalty call – and Palmer is bundled over by Szoboszlai, who then kicks the ball away. He gets a yellow card, probably for the latter infraction. James whips in a dangerous ball, which Nunez does well to nod away. And that’s half time.
49 mins: Close from Palmer! This is the closest Chelsea have come, with Cole Palmer controlling Madueke’s cutback and curling his effort just over the bar.
47 mins: Sanchez, who has been close to a liability for Chelsea in this half, got lucky there. I think that kind of challenge might be a red card even in rugby union.
Penalty to Liverpool? This is an awful mess, with Sanchez trying to block Jones’ shot and sending the Liverpool man flying over his shoulder. Brooks points to the spot, but the replays show Sanchez actually kicked the ball on to Jones’ shins … and after a monitor check, the penalty (and booking) is overturned.
45 mins: Madueke wins a corner, delivered by Palmer and headed away by Van Dijk. We’ll have five minutes of injury time …
44 mins: We close on half-time with a familiar pattern now in place – Chelsea probing in the Liverpool half, the hosts happy to wait and pounce on a mistake.
42 mins: Chelsea have plenty of attacking options on the bench – Nkunku, Neto, João Félix – although Jackson is OK to continue for now.
40 mins: Jackson has gone down off the ball, holding his hip. He’s had a busy international break, playing twice for Senegal in Afcon qualifying. It looks like he might have hurt himself after falling while taking that shot on a few minutes ago.
39 mins: Caicedo is robbed by Nunez, who feeds Salah on the right. His ball in to Gakpo’s feet puts him one-on-one with Adariaboyo, but the Chelsea defender stands his ground well this time.
38 mins: Palmer misjudges a pass on the edge of the Liverpool area; he’s not had the best of games so far. Chelsea come again, and the tricky Sancho is denied by Alexander-Arnold, at the expense of a corner.
36 mins: Gakpo plays a lovely pass in to Szoboszlai, who mishits a decent chance into Sanchez’s gloves, causing Peter Drury to shout DOMINIK Szoboszlai at an entirely unnecessary volume.
“I just made the mistake of checking the darker parts of the internet, where everything is binary and there are no shades of grey, and there are Arsenal supporters claiming that Adarabioyo’s yellow and Saliba’s red are definite proof there’s a PGMOL conspiracy against them,” writes Andy Flintoff (not that one).
I’ve never really understood how these refereeing conspiracies are supposed to work. If you have ever had a decision go your way, surely that debunks the whole theory?
34 mins: Chelsea break through Caicedo, who plays a raking diagonal ball to Jackson. His shot from a tight angle is decent, perhaps clipping the very outside of the post – but Maresca is unhappy he didn’t look up and see Palmer arriving in the middle.
No goal! They almost pay for their fuzzy thinking here, with Sanchez’s weak clearance setting up another Liverpool attack. Nunez flicks on to Jones, who plays in Salah, whose low cross is turned in by Gakpo. Lovely stuff … but the flag is up, Salah just offside in the buildup.
31 mins: Sanchez is off his line quickly to clear from under Nunez’s feet, before Salah wins a corner. Chelsea just need to clear their heads here …
