Liverpool maintained their grip on top spot in the Premier League as Mohamed Salah's penalty and a Curtis Jones strike earned them a deserved 2-1 victory over Chelsea at Anfield on Sunday.
The hosts had the better of the opening half and led when the impressive Jones won a penalty and Salah thumped home. Nicolas Jackson briefly raised Chelsea's hopes of a comeback with a leveller within minutes of the restart but Salah and Jones combined again, this time the Egyptian star teeing up the England midfielder to tuck away the winner.
“The win is the most important thing. I was involved a lot but I’m happy that we won,” said Jones before praising Salah for finding him for the winning goal.
“There’s been times when I have arrived in the box and it is a first-time finish. As soon as Mo had the ball I made the run, but it bounced so I had to have a touch, and then thankfully it went in.”
Chelsea skipper Reece James, who returned to the side after a spell out, felt they could take positives from their performance. "Coming here is always tough. I think we controlled most of the game. They had chances but we had a few chances as well but didn't take them," he said.
"We are definitely moving in the right direction. The scoreline doesn't reflect the game. If we step back and look at performances and what we are trying to do, we have come a long way. It is still early days, we haven't been with the manager long."
Liverpool started the game having been knocked off the top by Manchester City's dramatic 2-1 victory at Wolves in the early kick off. A run of six wins and a solitary defeat had taken them to the summit, with new boss Arne Slot's start in the Anfield dugout being hailed a triumph. The obvious caveat was that they had so far collected their points in games they might be expected to win, so this clash against Enzo Maresca's improving Chelsea side was expected to add more context to initial perceptions of their progress under the Dutch coach.
An early ball over the top saw Tosin Adarabioyo bundle over Diogo Jota in an ungainly tangle on halfway that left the Chelsea man booked and the Portuguese forward grimacing in pain.
But if Jota was struggling, his attacking partner Salah was thriving. The Egyptian's shot caused mayhem in the Chelsea box and Levi Colwill tripped Jones in the aftermath. Referee John Brooks pointed to the spot and Salah made no mistake.
The hosts continued to press the action and thought they had another penalty when Robert Sanchez pole-axed Jones in the box. A VAR review came to Chelsea's rescue, however, with the keeper deemed to have played the ball first.
As it was, Slot's side had to settle for a well-earned 1-0 lead and the comfort of knowing it had been 146 games since they had last lost when leading at the break on home turf.
Yet, within five minutes of the restart, that record looked under threat when Jackson raced on to Moises Caicedo's pass and finished past Caoimhin Kelleher.
Chelsea were level but simply could not keep Jones out of the action, and the midfielder soon restored Liverpool's lead when he collected Salah's pass and lifted a deft finish past Sanchez.
Maresca responded with a triple change but despite the occasional flash of quality from Pedro Neto and Christopher Nkunku, Liverpool were worth their three points.
Tomb%20Raider%20I%E2%80%93III%20Remastered
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Men from Barca's class of 99
Crystal Palace - Frank de Boer
Everton - Ronald Koeman
Manchester City - Pep Guardiola
Manchester United - Jose Mourinho
Southampton - Mauricio Pellegrino
LAST 16
SEEDS
Liverpool, Manchester City, Barcelona, Paris St-Germain, Bayern Munich, RB Leipzig, Valencia, Juventus
PLUS
Real Madrid, Tottenham, Atalanta, Atletico Madrid, Napoli, Borussia Dortmund, Lyon, Chelsea
The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
12%20restaurants%20opening%20at%20the%20hotel%20this%20month
%3Cp%3EAriana%E2%80%99s%20Persian%20Kitchen%3Cbr%3EDinner%20by%20Heston%20Blumenthal%3Cbr%3EEstiatorio%20Milos%3Cbr%3EHouse%20of%20Desserts%3Cbr%3EJaleo%20by%20Jose%20Andres%3Cbr%3ELa%20Mar%3Cbr%3ELing%20Ling%3Cbr%3ELittle%20Venice%20Cake%20Company%3Cbr%3EMalibu%2090265%3Cbr%3ENobu%20by%20the%20Beach%3Cbr%3EResonance%20by%20Heston%20Blumenthal%3Cbr%3EThe%20Royal%20Tearoom%C2%A0%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The%20Beekeeper
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The years Ramadan fell in May
The five stages of early child’s play
From Dubai-based clinical psychologist Daniella Salazar:
1. Solitary Play: This is where Infants and toddlers start to play on their own without seeming to notice the people around them. This is the beginning of play.
2. Onlooker play: This occurs where the toddler enjoys watching other people play. There doesn’t necessarily need to be any effort to begin play. They are learning how to imitate behaviours from others. This type of play may also appear in children who are more shy and introverted.
3. Parallel Play: This generally starts when children begin playing side-by-side without any interaction. Even though they aren’t physically interacting they are paying attention to each other. This is the beginning of the desire to be with other children.
4. Associative Play: At around age four or five, children become more interested in each other than in toys and begin to interact more. In this stage children start asking questions and talking about the different activities they are engaging in. They realise they have similar goals in play such as building a tower or playing with cars.
5. Social Play: In this stage children are starting to socialise more. They begin to share ideas and follow certain rules in a game. They slowly learn the definition of teamwork. They get to engage in basic social skills and interests begin to lead social interactions.
Masters%20of%20the%20Air
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirectors%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Cary%20Joji%20Fukunaga%2C%20Dee%20Rees%2C%20Anna%20Boden%2C%20Ryan%20Fleck%2C%20Tim%20Van%20Patten%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Austin%20Butler%2C%20Callum%20Turner%2C%20Anthony%20Boyle%2C%20Barry%20Keoghan%2C%20Sawyer%20Spielberg%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The Baghdad Clock
Shahad Al Rawi, Oneworld
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo
Power: 240hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 390Nm at 3,000rpm
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Price: from Dh122,745
On sale: now
Zayed Sustainability Prize
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FINAL SCORES
Fujairah 130 for 8 in 20 overs
(Sandy Sandeep 29, Hamdan Tahir 26 no, Umair Ali 2-15)
Sharjah 131 for 8 in 19.3 overs
(Kashif Daud 51, Umair Ali 20, Rohan Mustafa 2-17, Sabir Rao 2-26)
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed
AIDA%20RETURNS
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ECarol%20Mansour%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAida%20Abboud%2C%20Carol%20Mansour%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203.5.%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
The years Ramadan fell in May
Zayed Sustainability Prize
Match info
Uefa Champions League Group H
Manchester United v Young Boys, Tuesday, midnight (UAE)
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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