Diogo Jota returns to earn 10-man Liverpool battling point against Fulham

Diogo Joto marked his return from injury with a late equaliser as 10-man Liverpool fought back twice to earn a 2-2 draw against Fulham at Anfield.

Jota, who had been out of action since October, grabbed an 86th-minute leveller for Arne Slot's side, who were reduced to 10 men when Andy Robertson was sent off in the 17th minute.

The draw means Liverpool extended their lead at the top of the Premier League table to five points over second-placed Chelsea, while Arsenal – who dropped points in a 0-0 draw at home to Everton – sit in third spot a further point adrift.

Jota's equaliser stretched Liverpool's their unbeaten run in all competitions to 19 matches since a loss to Nottingham Forest in September.

With last weekend's Merseyside derby at Everton postponed by severe weather, Liverpool have now gone two league games without a win following their 3-3 draw at Newcastle.

And visitors Fulham gave Liverpool plenty of problems even before Robertson's dismissal, with Andreas Pereira volleying them ahead after 11 minutes.

Six minutes after that, Robertson saw red following a VAR review after denying Harry Wilson a goalscoring opportunity.

Earlier Issa Diop escaped a booking for a high challenge on an offside Robertson that left the Liverpool left-back injured but a VAR review spared the Fulham centre-back any punishment.

Two minutes after half-time, Cody Gakpo levelled the scores as he headed home a cross from Mohamed Salah, who notched his 100th assist for Liverpool in all competitions.

Fulham substitute Rodrigo Muniz thought he had given the Londoners the victory with a flicked finish in the 76th minute, only for substitute Jota to rescue a point after running on to Darwin Nunez's pass, beating his marker and driving home from the edge of the box.

After the game, Liverpool boss Slot told Sky Sports: “I don't think I could have asked for more from my players, especially after going down to 10 men. I couldn't have asked for more in terms of performance and results.

“Of course, we could have had two points more. At the start of the game, you always want to start intense. After 30 seconds, one of ours was on the floor and needed treatment for a while so we couldn't get the intensity more.

“I think Robbo [Robertson] might have been a bit too injured to keep going because normally he's faster than that. It says a lot about his character that he wants to keep on going but it results in a red card. I think it's just whether it's offside.

“I was clear it wasn't going to be changed. It's maybe the only thing I didn't complain about today. It's an emotional game and we were a man down, it's frustrating. It's good to see our performance after so many setbacks.

"It's difficult to judge for me because I only see it in real-time like the referee. We have to accept what VAR sees. You know how important these decisions can be. We ended up with a draw and I don't think we can blame the referee for that.

“It's marginal moments and when some go against you, you think some will go for you but I haven't felt that here. There was a moment when one of their players already on a yellow could have been given another.”

Fulham captain Antonee Robinson told BBC Match of the Day afterwards: “We were on even footing and then we scored and they got a red card. They took a lot of risks pushing men high and they were rewarded for it. There was space for us on the break but we didn't capitalise.

“They piled the pressure on and were really positive, They brought Jota on. I felt like Salah was getting the better of me in the first half, I was on a booking but I felt more myself in the second half.

“We've been managing to pick up results against top teams, that's the difference from last year. We've got injuries. It's all about getting everyone back and staying consistent.”

• Remittance charges will be tackled by blockchain

• UAE's monumental and risky Mars Mission to inspire future generations, says minister

• Could the UAE drive India's economy?

• News has a bright future and the UAE is at the heart of it

• Architecture is over - here's cybertecture

• The National announces Future of News journalism competition

• Round up: Experts share their visions of the world to come