Aston Villa 1-3 Liverpool – Salah, Van Dijk & Bajcetic Score In Boxing Day Win
Boxing Day #BoxingDay
Liverpool came out victorious in a high-tempo match at Villa Park on Boxing Day in the Premier League.
Boxing Day: the day for football and eating leftovers from the previous day. I hope you all had an enjoyable Christmas with your family and loved ones. Liverpool were clearly on the nice list this year as Santa Claus delivered three points under the tree for the Reds.
Jurgen Klopp opted for a much stronger starting eleven from his side that were knocked out in a 3-2 thriller at the Etihad in the round of 16 of the EFL Cup.
Alisson was back in between the sticks for Caoimhin Kelleher, with Trent Alexander-Arnold and Virgil van Dijk returning to the back four replacing the injured James Milner and Joe Gomez. Joel Matip kept his position partnering with Van Dijk, with Andy Robertson maintaining his left-back position.
Two midfield changes as Stefan Bajcetic and Harvey Elliott both made way for Jordan Henderson and Fabinho who were both alongside Thiago. Mohamed Salah and Darwin Nunez kept their place in attack, with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain joining them in place of Fabio Carvalho.
Liverpool started the game well and carved a way into a 1-0 lead inside five minutes after Alexander-Arnold’s superb outside-of-the-boot pass to Robertson was knocked across the six-yard box for an easy tap-in for Salah.
Robertson’s assist was a record-breaking 54th in the Premier League, the most for any defender in the competition’s history.
The Scotsman was close to adding to his assist tally, but Matip was deemed to be just offside after the central defender headed in Robertson’s cross into the back of the net.
Liverpool wouldn’t have to wait too long to double their lead, as Van Dijk’s left-footed effort after Salah knocked it back from a corner ensured a two-goal safety net heading into the half-time break.
An early scare in the first minute of the second half as Aston Villa’s Ollie Watkins appeared to pull a goal back, but the goal was greeted with the offside flag. The English forward would get his goal, though, as he scored a header from a sublime cross by Douglas Luiz.
This presented Liverpool with a very uncomfortable 20 minutes – they had a storm to weather. Naby Keita, Harvey Elliott, Joe Gomez all entered the pitch but it was the substitution of Stefan Bajcetic that won the game for Liverpool.
The 18-year-old Spanish midfielder picked up the ball after Darwin Nunez cut it back from the byline, a quick hop around the goalkeeper and through the legs of Tyrone Mings and Liverpool were 3-1 up.
A cameo from Ben Doak and a cheeky nutmeg on Lucas Digne from the 17-year-old capped off an impressive night from the Reds.
Up next for Liverpool are Leicester City at Anfield in the Premier League on 30 December at 8pm. The last game of a turbulent and unpredictable 2022 for Liverpool Football Club.
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