Ekitike and Isak help Liverpool squeeze past nine-man Tottenham

Defending champions Liverpool triumph 2-1 astatine Tottenham to ascent to 5th successful the Premier League table.

Alexander Isak endured a bittersweet evening arsenic the Liverpool striker scored earlier limping disconnected injured successful a chaotic 2-1 triumph implicit nine-man Tottenham.

Isak enactment Liverpool up successful the 2nd fractional successful northbound London connected Saturday aft Tottenham’s Xavi Simons was sent disconnected earlier the interval for a nasty lunge connected Virgil van Dijk.

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It was lone Isak’s 3rd extremity successful 16 games successful each competitions since his British grounds 125-million-pound ($166m) determination from Newcastle connected transportation deadline day.

Yet successful keeping with Isak’s troubled commencement to beingness with the Premier League champions, the 26-year-old was incapable to afloat bask his extremity arsenic helium was forced to travel disconnected aft being injured by Micky van de Ven’s failed effort to halt him scoring.

Hugo Ekitike’s 5th extremity successful his past 4 appearances enactment Liverpool successful bid earlier Richarlison’s reply acceptable up a tense finale that came to a caput with Tottenham defender Romero’s dismissal successful stoppage time.

Arne Slot’s broadside are up to 5th spot successful the Premier League aft extending their unbeaten tally to six games successful each competitions, further distancing them from the miserable tally of 9 defeats successful 12 that plunged them into crisis.

While Liverpool steadied the vessel with a 3rd successive win, Isak’s wounded could not person travel astatine a worse clip pursuing Mohamed Salah’s departure for the Africa Cup of Nations.

Slot claimed connected Friday that Liverpool had “moved on” from the Salah contention aft his explosive interrogation 2 weeks agone successful which helium said helium had been thrown nether the autobus by the nine and nary longer had a narration with the Reds boss.

He was dropped from the squad for a Champions League crippled astatine Inter Milan but returned arsenic a substitute successful past week’s triumph implicit Brighton.

The 33-year-old is present connected planetary work with Egypt for respective weeks, making Isak’s wounded an particularly achy stroke if helium is ruled retired for a prolonged period.

Slot volition walk Christmas sweating connected Isak’s fitness, and Tottenham manager Thomas Frank’s festive play volition beryllium adjacent much fraught.

Last weekend’s limp 3-0 nonaccomplishment astatine Nottingham Forest sparked statement implicit the Dane’s aboriginal successful his rocky archetypal play successful charge.

Tottenham are languishing successful 13th spot aft winning conscionable 1 of their past 8 league games.

Ange Postecoglou was sacked contempt winning the Europa League past play to extremity Tottenham’s 17-year trophy drought, and Frank is successful information of suffering the aforesaid destiny arsenic the Australian if results bash not amended soon.

Simons near Tottenham with a upland to ascent successful the 33rd infinitesimal erstwhile helium raked his studs down Van Dijk’s calf with an disfigured situation from behind.

Initially booked for the foul, Simons was shown the reddish paper aft a VAR review.

Slot sent connected Isak for the injured Conor Bradley astatine half-time and it took the Sweden striker conscionable 11 minutes to marque an interaction arsenic Liverpool broke the deadlock with a extremity 300 cardinal pounds ($399m) successful the making.

All 3 of Liverpool’s costly close-season signings combined arsenic Ekitike picked retired Florian Wirtz, and helium slipped a perfectly weighted walk to Isak, who timed his tally to drill a objective decorativeness past Guglielmo Vicario from 10 yards.

Ekitike doubled Liverpool’s pb successful the 66th minute.

Jeremie Frimpong’s deflected transverse looped into the six-yard box, wherever Ekitike out-jumped Romero to thump his header into the apical corner.

Richarlison reduced the shortage with a close-range blast aft Reds skipper van Dijk miscued a clearance successful the 83rd minute.

But, with the visitors wobbling, Romero’s 2nd booking for kicking Ibrahima Konate fto Liverpool disconnected the hook.