Neil Warnock cuts out the moaning, Jordan Henderson scythes through Chelsea and injuries may leave Spurs’ midfield bluntedThe Dozen: our pick of the weekend’s best photosAfter 76 minutes, when he was withdrawn to a deafening ovation, Jordan Henderson’s work was done. A lung-busting display by the Liverpool captain set the tone for a vital victory, a relentless performance typified by the moment when he burst to the byline and supplied a hanging cross for Sadio Mané to convert. Henderson asked Jürgen Klopp if he could play further forward in a “more natural” No 8 role – one he has impressed in for his country – and he flourished there against Chelsea. Mohamed Salah’s rocket, another peerless defensive display by Virgil...
Chelsea talisman is anonymous playing in the middle and only carries real threat after moving wide left but his misses are made more glaring by Liverpool striker’s finishingThere is no doubt that Eden Hazard is one of the most exciting attacking players in the Premier League but this match made interesting viewing for all those Chelsea supporters pleased to see him used through the middle. His opportunities were extremely limited in that role whereas, when Chelsea went two goals down and sent on Gonzalo Higuaín as the main striker, Hazard was noticeably more effective when operating from wide left.Twice around the hour mark Hazard had clear chances to rescue something from the game. He failed on both occasions, though at...
Anfield’s last title challenge in 2014 was derailed by an infamous blunder from their talismanic captain against Sunday’s visitorsSteven Gerrard is probably looking away already, for while the fifth anniversary of his infamous slip against Chelsea is still a couple of weeks away, deja vu is inescapable when today’s fixtures offer an exact repeat of the situation when Liverpool last saw a title slide out of view.Their rivals then, as now, were Manchester City, away at Crystal Palace on 27 April 2014 as Liverpool prepared to meet second-placed Chelsea at Anfield. The difference is that five years ago Liverpool were in the driving seat, a 16-game unbeaten run that included thumping wins against Arsenal, Manchester United and Tottenham having taken...
One of Tottenham or Manchester City will definitely go through and Liverpool have the easiest opponents which leaves only Manchester United, who need to win in BarcelonaThese have been a memorable few weeks for Tottenham. I have not been to their stadium but the images online look incredible and the Spurs supporters’ response to it has been extremely positive. In two games there they have two victories and they are yet to concede a goal. On Tuesday they took control of their Champions League quarter-final against Manchester City, with Son Heung-min scoring another vital goal. Related: In praise of the Cup Winners' Cup, the competition that was never retained Related: Pogba says Manchester United must be ‘killers in front of...
Troy Deeney offers masterclass of coolness under pressure, Everton require a few lessons in finishing and Eddie Howe needs his Bournemouth team to end the season in styleIt is hard to look for the positives when you have, as Lewis Dunk put it, missed out on something that “maybe comes up once in a lifetime”. The quashing of the FA Cup final dream hurt but the Brighton defender has urged his teammates to take confidence from their performance and use that in their vital Premier League games. Brighton are two places ahead of the final relegation position but crave more points to be safe. “I don’t think we need picking up,” Dunk said. “I think we need to thrive off...