Liverpool defeated West Ham United 2-1 in a thrilling Premier League match at the London Stadium, thanks to a goal from Joel Matip. The victory moved Liverpool ahead of Tottenham Hotspur and into the European places.
The Reds are currently in sixth place in the standings with 53 points. They have a better goal difference than Spurs and are one point behind Aston Villa, with a game yet to play. They hope to improve their season, which has been disappointing so far.
The visitors had a tough time winning the game as West Ham scored first in an impressive way in the 12th minute when Lucas Paqueta made a pass with Michail Antonio and scored from outside the box.
The lead was short-lived as Cody Gakpo, a Dutch striker, scored a goal by receiving a pass in the center, taking a touch, and then quickly unleashing a bouncing shot that went past Lukasz Fabianski’s dive and settled in the far corner of the goal.
Virgil van Dijk’s exceptional defense prevented West Ham from scoring again just before half-time. He managed to block Antonio’s attempt at the far post by using his toe to intercept a fantastic angled pass from Said Benrahma.
Liverpool had control of the ball for most of the game, but West Ham posed a threat when they counter-attacked. One of their goals, scored by Jarrod Bowen, was disallowed by VAR due to an offside call in the second half.
Matip scored the winning goal in the 67th minute with a powerful header from a corner taken by Andy Robertson, after having a previous shot blocked.
The referee denied West Ham’s penalty claim after substitute Thiago Alcantara’s arm was hit by the ball during a tackle. Despite VAR not intervening, Liverpool managed to secure their third consecutive win.
Juergen Klopp, the manager, was happy with the outcome and how his team played, but he believes his team is still unable to qualify for the Champions League.
He stated that discussing it was pointless since they don’t have control over it. Their focus should be on winning as many points as possible to put pressure on others, even though those teams have an advantage.
David Moyes was disappointed when the referee didn’t give his team a penalty for a handball, and he walked up to the referee at the end of the game to express his frustration.
According to him, if a player lunges in the box with their arms out, it should be considered a penalty kick and it is not the same as slipping or trying to break a fall.
West Ham’s loss ended their streak of three consecutive wins, causing them to drop to 14th place in the league standings. Despite this setback, they are still five points ahead of Leicester City who are currently in 18th place.