Brighton v Liverpool: Premier League – live!

8.21am EST 08:21

“Guess the job,” says Stephen Carr. “Election auditor.”

Heh, very good.

Updated at 8.24am EST

8.20am EST 08:20

“I’m a Liverpool fan so I have to declare an interest but the Salah goal was NOT offside,” says David Buckley. “If you look closely at the replay the ball had already left Firmino’s boot when the image was frozen. Half a frame it might be but the ball had been struck and was in motion. The technology is not quite there for these marginal decisions and the benefit of the doubt has to go to the attacking side.”

Yes, this split-frame issue is another problem with VAR. There’s a good argument for having the equivalent of ‘umpire’s call’ in cricket, which would have meant Salah’s goal being given.

Updated at 8.22am EST

8.19am EST 08:19

Half time: Brighton 0-0 Liverpool

Peep peep! Brighton are holding Liverpool at the Amex Stadium, and the scoreline doesn’t flatter tham at all. Neal Maupay missed a penalty and Aaron Connolly has been a constant threat to Liverpool’s makeshift defence. Apart from an excellent first five minutes, Liverpool have been surprisingly sluggish. Mo Salah had a goal VARed for offside, but that was about it.

8.16am EST 08:16

45 min “Hey Rob,” says Ross O’Connor. “Don’t you think the whole VAR business has gotten a bit ridiculous? The offside rule was devised to stop clumps of players goal-hanging in the opponent’s box, thus reducing the game to a series of lumped balls from one penalty area to the other. It was not designed to rule players offside by the width of a piece of paper. And I speak as someone who can’t stand Liverpool.”

I loathe almost everything about VAR, but I do understand the ‘offside is offside’ argument. I’m not sure there’s a satisfactory solution to any of it, because it won’t be put back in its box.

8.15am EST 08:15

44 min There’s a break in play while Bissouma receives treatment, I think to his hip. He’s going to continue for now. He’s a really important player for Brighton so they won’t want to lose him.

8.13am EST 08:13

43 min “Guess the job,” says Mary Waltz. “Graveyard shift at a hospital. I get Peacock on my package so I also do the 4am west coast wake up call. Retired. Afternoon naps are lovely.”

Afternoon naps are tremendous , especially when they’re on the Guardian’s dime .

8.13am EST 08:13

42 min A shot on target! Dunk’s clearance only goes to Minamino 25 yards from goal. He controls the ball and flicks a shot with the outside of the boot that is comfortably saved by Ryan.

8.12am EST 08:12

41 min Gary Naylor is not a fan of the high press.

“Okay lads, Mo Salah on Saturday – you know what to do.”

“Drop off and give him no space to get in behind boss?”

“It’s 2020 lads! Press up to the halfway line – what can go wrong?”

8.09am EST 08:09

39 min “Like many other people, I guess, I’ve been dosing up on Maradona videos these last few days,” says Charles Antaki. “It’s tempting to mentally cut and paste those into what we’re seeing in front of us. It’s sort of works; a dribble from the halfway line, a push through a crowded box, a goal from an impossible angle… but everything else about it fails: the air of the Premier League 2020 is just too sterile for that kind of genius. Maybe all of football has been since the turn of the 21st century.”

It’s an interesting point. I’d love to have seen him on these perfect pitches and against defenders who weren’t allowed to butcher him from behind.

8.09am EST 08:09

38 min A cross shot from Welbeck drifts across the face of goal. Brighton have had plenty of openings like that, more than you usually get against Liverpool.

8.06am EST 08:06

NO GOAL! Brighton 0-0 Liverpool

Salah was just offside. Jurgen Klopp is telling the fourth official what he thinks of the decision.

Salah scores but he is just offside. Photograph: Neil Hall/PA

Updated at 8.12am EST

8.05am EST 08:05

Alisson drives a goalkick to Firmino on the right wing. He chests the ball down and lobs it over the defence to Salah, who runs through and bobbles the ball past Ryan with his right foot. That was devastatingly efficient from Liverpool. It’s being checked for offside though.

Updated at 8.06am EST

8.04am EST 08:04

33 min Trossard curls a few yards wide from 20 yards after a good pass from Connolly. Alisson had it covered. Liverpool have been rubbish in the last 15-20 minutes.

8.03am EST 08:03

33 min “It sucks that we can’t catch any early games here in the US on NBC anymore but I appreciate the Guardian for the work you guys do to bring us the games,” says Yasin Ntume. “As someone who works at night this is a great way to follow the game that I love so dearly. Time check 4:49am.”

Let’s play ‘guess the job’. Security guard?

8.01am EST 08:01

32 min Liverpool have some good options on the bench, Mane and Henderson in particular. If it stays like this we’ll see both of them, perhaps as early as half-time.

8.00am EST 08:00

30 min “In most instances technology is often a vast improvement on the fallibility of humans,” says Mary Waltz. “VAR is the exception that proves the rule. Bin it. Yes there will be howlers from the Mike Deans of the world, yes we will scream at the officials, but I would rather complain about a human rather than a machine that is just as fickle.”

It’s too late, it’s out of the box. Like something equally poisonous, social media, it needed to be stopped at source.

7.59am EST 07:59

29 min Connolly’s pace and movement are causing Liverpool a lot of problems. He’s now playing down the middle in place of Maupay, with Trossard on the right. Jurgen Klopp looks pretty displeased with how his team are playing.

7.58am EST 07:58

27 min “I’m biased as a Liverpool fan but it looked to me that Connolly put his leg closer to Nico Williams in order to gain the foul?” says Mike MacKenzie. “He may not have done that but I’ve seen it done. Very hard for a ref to determine if that occurred.”

Yeah, Connolly often does that, though I still think it was probably a foul. It certainly wasn’t a clear and obvious error.

Updated at 7.58am EST

7.57am EST 07:57

26 min There’s a VAR check for handball against Robertson, who waved his hand in the air as Connolly lobbed the ball over him. It didn’t touch his hand and play continues.

7.55am EST 07:55

25 min Liverpool started really well but have been sluggish in the last 15 minutes or so.

7.55am EST 07:55

24 min Veltman clips a good pass behind Phillips to find Connolly, who can’t control a difficult ball on the run.

7.54am EST 07:54

23 min Maupay, who missed the penalty, is now going off with a hamstring injury. He’s walked straight down the tunnel, in a rare old funk.

7.53am EST 07:53

22 min That penalty award shows the inconsistency of VAR. It was almost identical to a penalty that Connolly won against Manchester United after a foul by Paul Pogba, a decision that was then overturned by VAR.

7.51am EST 07:51

MAUPAY MISSES THE PENALTY!

20 min Oh my days. Maupay sent Alisson the wrong way but slid the ball this far wide of the right-hand post.

Brighton’s Neal Maupay puts the penalty wide. Photograph: Kirsty Wigglesworth/Reuters

Updated at 7.57am EST

7.50am EST 07:50

19 min: PENALTY TO BRIGHTON! A clumsy tackle by Neco Williams on Connolly has been penalised. Stuart Attwell took his time before giving the penalty, but I don’t think it will be overturned.

Liverpool’s Neco Williams brings down Brighton’s Aaron Connolly in the box. Photograph: Mike Hewitt/Reuters

Updated at 7.55am EST

7.49am EST 07:49

18 min Brighton are having a more even share of the game now. March’s inswinging corner is headed away at the near post by Milner.

7.47am EST 07:47

16 min I thought Minamino was playing as a No10 but increasingly it looks like he’s the third central midfielder alongside Wijnaldum and Milner. You can never get complacent with tactics, that’s the beauty of them.

7.46am EST 07:46

15 min Jota slips White neatly and is flattened. White is lucky not to be booked.

7.44am EST 07:44

14 min “Hi Rob,” says Gary Naylor. “I read an excellent piece last night that got to the heart of El Diego’s ‘other’ World Cup (well, one of them). It sounds, as so much does this week, more myth than truth, but truth it is.”

Oh, Gary.

7.44am EST 07:44

13 min Connolly almost gets in again, this time from Gross’s smart first-time pass. Alisson comes a long way from his area to clear.

7.42am EST 07:42

11 min “Hi Rob,” says Duncan Edwards. “It’s a shame Tariq Lamptey isn’t playing today as he’d have given Andy Robertson something to think about other than getting forward and wreaking havoc. I can’t believe his red card wasn’t overturned as I don’t think he deserved that second yellow and the fad Grealish made a meal of it. Pah.”

I don’t think they can overturn red cards that are given for two yellows, a regulation that feels a bit outdated.

7.42am EST 07:42

10 min: Connolly misses a great chance! Brighton almost scored with their first attack. Maupay turned on the halfway line and slid a lovely through pass to Connolly, who scooted between Phillips and Fabinho. He reached the edge of the area, opened his body and sidefooted the ball just wide of the far post.

7.38am EST 07:38

7 min Brighton’s front three have barely had a kick so far. Liverpool have started with impressive authority.

7.37am EST 07:37

5 min “So what if Messi didn’t score in a World Cup knockout,” says Tom Andejri. “Give it a rest man. Who cares about the WC anyway?”

The world? Anyway, that’s enough of Maradona v Messi. I can’t be bothered, and there’s a game to watch.

7.34am EST 07:34

3 min Liverpool have made an excellent start. Fabinho drives a pass over the defence to Salah, who makes a fine run inside Webster. He takes the ball down on his chest and smashes a half-volley just wide from 20 yards.

7.33am EST 07:33

3 min I thought Mo Salah might start in the centre but he is playing from the right, with Firmino as a false nine and Minamino the No10.

7.33am EST 07:33

2 min Firmino slides a nice pass inside White to release Jota in the inside-left channel. He tries to find the unmarked Salah at the far post but underhits the pass slightly, which allows Dunk to get back and concede a corner.

7.31am EST 07:31

“Can we all stop the Maradona hagiography now?” says Richard Hirst. “Not even the Argentinian GOAT, let alone the world’s. Unless of course it is true that Messi is from another planet and therefore ineligible.”

Messi has never scored a goal in the knockout stages of a World Cup. Anyway, let’s leave it, we’ll just bore each other.

7.30am EST 07:30

It’s a beautiful November day in Brighton & Hove, sunny and clear. There will be a minute’s applause before the game to commemorate the greatest footballer we will ever see.

7.20am EST 07:20

“Morning – sorry – afternoon Rob,” says Colin Young. “Why are LFC fans so fearful that Klopp ‘will be moving on’ when it’s not necessarily the case? True, there are those managers who like to make a point then move on (Mourinho being the most obvious space-hopper of the lot) but it’s not a nailed on certainty is it? Perhaps it’s all down to Arsene Wenger – who could have gone literally anywhere in the summer of 2004 but chose to stick around at Arsenal, winning diddly afterwards and watching as his career, and with it his reputation, slip away? It’s strange though… it now seems ‘obvious’ that managers will move on – even more so than players. Why is this?”

I suppose it’s because 99 per cent of them do move on. Post-Wenger, is there anybody in world football who has been at a club for over 10 years? I do think Klopp will buck the trend to some extent, though, and it won’t surprise me if he does a full decade at Anfield.

Updated at 7.21am EST

7.15am EST 07:15

“Hi Rob,” says Kishalay Banerjee. “Based on Pep and Klopp’s statements over the years, it seems that they have plans for managing Spain and Germany at some point in the future. Given the intensity and detail-oriented nature of their management, I wonder how (or if) they would modify their approaches to suit the fact that they will have a much limited time with their international squads. It would be fascinating to watch how their approaches differ from their club tactics, and how it affects their head-to-head results.”

It’s a really good point. I’m not sure it would suit either of them, particularly Guardiola.

7.08am EST 07:08

“Is that the weakest Liverpool bench you’ve seen for a while?” askys Neill Brown. “I know Mane is one of the best attackers in the world but the others are… trusted by Jurgen Klopp, so must be bloody good. But the bench still seems a bit thin for the best team in Europe. I don’t mind Brighton’s chances today.”

Henderson, Jones, Tsimikas, Mane… I’ve seen worse. I know what you mean, though – I fancy Brighton a bit more than I did before I saw the teams.

7.04am EST 07:04

“Morning Rob,” says David Horn. “As a Liverpool fan I’m forced to confront (and when I say ‘forced’ I mean ‘masochistically compelled’) the fact that one day Klopp will leave us. I like to imagine who, on that terrible day, might step into the breach, bringing something new while embracing something old. And, among others, Graham Potter springs to mind. He seems to me to have the right mix of idealism and pragmatism, innovation and tradition. Of course I also like to think we have a few more years of Klopp left. (Oh and Nuno is one of the others who my thoughts turn to, since you ask.)”

How long do you think Klopp will stay? I think he’ll want at least two more league titles, and ideally one more Champions League, before he does one.

6.57am EST 06:57

“Hello Rob,” says Martin S. “Do we really think Spurs can mount a decent challenge this year? As that’s the fixture LFC fans will surely look closest at tomorrow. Or will Lampard have a shot? OR will it be a Mourinho flop?”

I think Liverpool will win by 10-15 points, but Spurs are capable of finishing above the rest and I certainly think they’ll finish in the top four. I hope they mount a challenge, though. There are few things I would enjoy more than Jose Mourinho winning the Premier League and turning his acceptance speech into a relentless eight-hour score-settler.

6.53am EST 06:53

“As Larkin said, the dropping of Mane ‘brings the priest and the doctor, in their long coats, running across the fields’,” says Ian Copestake. “He was last left out for the Aston Villa debacle.”

If only they’d picked him; it might have been 7-4.

6.36am EST 06:36

Team news

Adam Lallana is only fit enough to be on the bench against his old club. Aaron Connolly replaces him, and Joel Veltman is in for the suspended Tariq Lamptey.

Liverpool have made six changes from the team that lost at home to Atalanta. Joel Matip is rested, which means a start for Nat Phillips alongside Fabinho, and Takumi Minamino starts in what looks like a 4-2-3-1 formation.

Brighton (3-4-3) Ryan; White, Dunk, Webster; Veltman, Bissouma, Gross, March; Welbeck, Maupay, Connolly.Substitutes: Steele, Burn, Lallana, Alzate, Molumby, Trossard, Jahanbakhsh.

Liverpool (4-3-3) Alisson; N Williams, Phillips, Fabinho, Robertson; Minamino, Wijnaldum, Milner; Salah, Firmino, Jota.Substitutes: Adrian, Tsimikas, R Williams, Henderson, Jones, Mane, Origi.

Referee Stuart Attwell.

Updated at 7.48am EST

5.45am EST 05:45

Preamble

Hello and welcome to live, minute-by-minute coverage of Brighton v Liverpool at the Amex Stadium. Liverpool will go top of the Premier League if they avoid defeat. It might only be for 24 hours; it might be for the rest of the season. Although they have had a slightly odd start to this very odd season, there have been enough signs that Liverpool are still the best team in England by a fair distance.

Most of those signs have been at Anfield. Liverpool have won only one of their four away games in the league, though there were mitigating circumstances for the draws at Everton and Manchester City. It could be worse: Brighton have won only one league game at home all year. And they haven’t even drawn a game against Liverpool since 1991. Brighton are a decent, very likeable side but I’m not sure I fancy their chances today. If they do win, tomorrow’s front pages will be theirs.

Kick off 12.30pm.

Updated at 6.19am EST