Premier League: Ten-Man Chelsea Hold Liverpool To 1-1 Draw At Anfield
SMA NEWS – LIVERPOOL
Chelsea held on to a 1-1 draw against Liverpool in the Premier League despite full-back Reece James being sent off late in the first half at Anfield.
Ten-man Chelsea produced a display of remarkable resistance to hold on for a 1-1 draw with Liverpool, in an epic, enthralling contest between two Premier League title hopefuls at Anfield, following Reece James’ hotly-debated sending off in first-half injury time.
The Champions League holders had won at this venue in March and were impressing again on Liverpool’s patch, leading through Kai Havertz’s brilliant header, as an enthralling contest approached half-time. But drama and controversy moments before the break transformed the match.
Joel Matip hit the bar as Chelsea struggled to clear a corner and when Sadio Mane rifled in a follow-up shot the ball cannoned into James’ arm off his knee on the goal-line, before the defender appeared to try to flick the ball away with his hand.
Referee Anthony Taylor consulted the pitchside monitor on VAR’s advice and infuriated the Chelsea players by not only awarding a spot-kick – but also showing James a red card for denying a clear goal scoring opportunity.
Mohamed Salah converted the resulting penalty into a goal, but Jurgen Klopp’s men failed to make their man advantage count in the second-half as the European champions showed resilience to dig out a precious point that strengthened their title credentials.
