Fulham is defeated by Mohamed Salah, keeping Liverpool in the top four.

Fulham is defeated by Mohamed Salah, keeping Liverpool in the top four – Salah sinks Fulham and maintains Liverpool in top four. Anfield Andy Hunter @AHunterGuardian Wed 3 May 2023 22.00 BST 240  Liverpool’s second home win of the week was modest compared to the first, but Jürgen Klopp was relieved. Liverpool’s finest run of the season, a fifth consecutive Premier League win, kept Champions League qualifying alive and marked another milestone in Mohamed Salah’s Anfield career.

Marco Silva was the irate manager. Fulham’s boss accused VAR of failing and Darwin Núñez of diving for the penalty that won the game and ruined his team’s otherwise strong defense. Salah scored against Tottenham on Sunday, becoming the first player to score in eight successive Liverpool home games. In 1927-28 and 2014, Liverpool’s Gordon Hodgson and Luis Suárez scored eight straight home goals before injury and suspension ended their streaks.

Salah is seventh on Liverpool’s league goalscorers chart and one behind Steven Gerrard’s 186 in all competitions. Silva was displeased. Fulham’s manager called the goal’s manner humiliating. “I think we deserved more and to lose in that manner is really difficult for us to understand. Darwin started to dive after touching the ball, but the referee gave it and the VAR cannot overturn it. We think it’s not a penalty, and the VAR should overrule the referee. Referee error.”

Salah’s accuracy and Alisson’s goalkeeping narrowed the distance on fourth-placed Manchester United to four points, although Erik ten Hag’s side have two games in hand. In an anxious finale, Liverpool’s goalkeeper saved Carlos Vinícius and Bobby Decordova-Reid missed a clear chance in stoppage time. Salah, Núñez, and Luis Díaz were most people’s first-choice forward line at the start of the season, but the Colombian’s serious knee injury and the Uruguay striker’s difficult debut have kept it that way. The trio began together for the fifth time against Fulham and showed both potential and rust.

Klopp said: “They did well. Luis struggles after 30 minutes. We play a lot of games. Who should rest? Cody (Gakpo)? Diogo (Jota) couldn’t train again. Long periods of success. Racehorse Darwin. Fired up. We value that. Diogo and Cody played defense after coming on. When the last pass failed, we had some great chances. It’s fine. It was good.” Liverpool dominated possession, but the visitors were a threat on the counterattack, playing fearlessly through midfield and well down their right flank. After Tosin Adarabioyo’s through balls, Virgil van Dijk stopped Harry Wilson from setting up Vinícius early on, and Alisson saved the Fulham striker with a flying save.