Burnley 0-1 Liverpool: Salah’s Late Penalty Secures Win

There was an element of surprise in Liverpool’s squad selection as record signing Alexander Isak was not included in the matchday squad.

Mohamed Salah was once again Liverpool’s saviour after converting a late penalty.

Liverpool were unchanged as Dominik Szoboszlai once again started at right-back. The away side dominated the early stages as expected, with a lot of intricate passes exchanged between Wirtz, Mac Allister and Gravenberch.

Burnley tried to hit Liverpool on the counter consistently. Jaidon Anthony had an early shot that went just over the bar.

Liverpool struggled to create clear-cut chances in the first half. Ibrahima Konate should have done better with a header from less than six yards out.

Arne Slot made a bold decision to substitute Milos Kerkez with Andy Robertson in the first half. It wasn’t injury-related, as Slot embraced Kerkez as he came off the pitch. It was clear that Kerkez was struggling defensively.

Liverpool were poor by their own standards in the first half and could not break down Burnley.

The league leaders started the second half quickly, with Gakpo skipping past Kyle Walker and shouts for a penalty. The following corner saw a Gravenberch volley deflected over the bar.

Liverpool continued to create chances in the second half. Florian Wirtz curled an effort wide, and then Szoboszlai stung the gloves of Martin Dubravka from 25 yards out.

Liverpool made multiple substitutions, with Jeremie Frimpong, Rio Ngumoha and Federico Chiesa all coming on to mount more pressure. The game became even more one-sided when Lesley Ugochukwu was sent off with five minutes to play.

Liverpool kept pushing and were rewarded for their efforts after Hannibal gave away a penalty for handball in the 94th minute. Mohamed Salah stepped up and coolly dispatched the last-minute penalty.

Liverpool go back to the top of the league, three points clear, and Burnley sit just above the relegation zone in 17th place. Burnley and Scott Parker will be disappointed to concede so late on, but they put in a valiant performance and were unlucky at the end.