The long and damaging wait is over for Liverpool. On 10 April, and at the eighth time of asking, the Premier League champions finally won a game at Anfield in 2021 as Trent Alexander-Arnold’s 91st-minute strike deflated Aston Villa and elevated Liverpool back into the top four. There was no disguising what the goal meant to the full-back after a week of intense criticism following his error-strewn display against Real Madrid, nor Jürgen Klopp and his backroom team as they exploded off the bench in joy.
Dean Smith’s team appeared on course for a hard-earned away point after taking the lead through Ollie Watkins, striking a post through Mahmoud Trézéguet and surviving a tight VAR call that denied Roberto Firmino a first-half equaliser. But Alexander-Arnold’s excellent finish in front of the watching Gareth Southgate, following Mohamed Salah’s 19th league goal of the season, brought Liverpool the release they required before their Champions League quarter-final second leg against the Spanish side.
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