As always, we’d love to hear your thoughts on the game. E-mail aaron@the42.ie, tweet @the42_ie, post a message to our Facebook wall, or leave a comment below.
You may need to refresh the page for YouTube videos and other elements to display correctly.
Liverpool zipping the ball all around the Anfield surface in these early exchanges. A calm atmosphere in the stands as Swansea are happy to stand off and play the role of spectator.
It’s a sublime hit from Philippe Coutinho and the Brazilian really is in the form of his life. Brazilian team-mate Firmino nicks possession 40 yards out from goal before feeding the ball side-ways to the Liverpool number 10.
Coutinho takes one touch to set himself up before curling a stunning effort flying past Fabiański to take an early lead.
26 Dec 2017
5:40PM
I always want Phil Coutinho playing in midfield but in fairness, that goal comes from him being further up the pitch, combined, of course, with him being able to hit incredible shots from just outside the area.
Another decent chance for Liverpool as Firmino twists and turns inside the box after cutting side following a through ball from Mohamed Salah. His shot is blocked and then subsequently cleared.
26 Dec 2017
5:43PM
More combination play from Salah, Firmino and Coutinho. As Jamie Carragher says, it’s like a five-a-side move — so precise, so slick. The final ball is poor, however. It falls on the edge of the box to Andrew Robertson who boots a powerful effort wide of the post.
Another chance for Liverpool. Coutinho drops deep and curls a cross aimed towards the back post. Salah tries to get his head to it, but there is just too much on the ball into the danger zone for the winger.
26 Dec 2017
5:49PM
It took three defenders to disposes Salah following another break. He dances with quick feet inside the penalty area and Roque Mesa eventually manages to boot the ball into touch. He was teasing with them there, Salah.
26 Dec 2017
5:54PM
It’s all very pedestrian for Liverpool at the moment. If nothing else can that be seen in the fact that Ragnar Klavan decided on a mazy run which lasted all of 10 yards before he was hauled down — the centre back earning Liverpool a free-kick on half-way. Leon Britton’s side looking very reserved right now.
26 Dec 2017
5:57PM
Mohamed Salah breaks forward at pace but the move breaks down inside the box once again. It was the ideal start with Coutinho’s early thunderbolt, but Jurgen Klopp’s side have squandered a number of chances in succession now, as Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain crashes another effort from range over the bar.
26 Dec 2017
6:02PM
A cross from Wayne Routledge finds no-one inside the box, but that is better from Swansea. For the first time in a long time they exit their own half with the goal in search of the opposition goal.
As that is said, Liverpool break to punish a sloppy Swansea pass via a swift counter. Roberto Firmino tries an effort from range as the space opens up in front of him but it slides wide of the post to no avail.
26 Dec 2017
6:09PM
Liverpool put under a bit of pressure for the first time in this game as space opens up for Oliver McBurnie after he beat two players inside the box. The chance breaks down, however, and comes to nothing. But better again from the visitors as Klopp’s side sit back.
26 Dec 2017
6:11PM
Coutinho with another chance as Liverpool wake up again from their momentary slumber. He dribbles inside the box with that low centre of gravity he possesses and his shot ricochets off a Swansea body and out for a corner — which is easily cleared at the first hurdle.
26 Dec 2017
6:16PM
Anfield is falling desperately quiet this afternoon. The game is being played at a slow, steady pace with odd chances littered every five minutes or so — but for some reason that electric spark is fleeting as individual voices can be heard shouting from the stands.
26 Dec 2017
6:17PM
There will be just two minutes of additional time to come.
26 Dec 2017
6:18PM
Chance! That really should have been 2-0 to Liverpool. It’s very complacent from Roberto Firmino — he cuts onto his right foot but he drags it just wide of the post with only the goalkeeper to beat six yards out from goal.
Early chance! Mohamed Salah dances into the box, cuts inside and tries to curl the ball into the far corner. However Fabiański keeps level with it, dives right and catches it firmly with a well-taken save.
It’s another sublime goal with Coutinho instrumental once again. It’s an all-Brazilian move as the number 10 curls in a dangerous free-kick towards the back post where Roberto Firmino knocks the ball with the side of his foot easily past Lukasz Fabiański. 2-0 and Liverpool are up and running for the second half.
26 Dec 2017
6:45PM
A yellow card for Martin Olsson as he hauls down Firmino with an outstretched foot on the edge of the box. The free-kick is straight off the training round — Salah peeling away from his marker at the back post untracked — but his strike curls just side of the bottom corner. Excellent move which earns the plaudits of the Anfield crowd.
26 Dec 2017
6:49PM
A brilliant individual run from Georginio Wijnaldum sees him wander into the box, but he is disposed just as he aimed to pull the trigger and offer an effort on goal to further test Fabiański.
26 Dec 2017
6:49PM
63 - Roberto Firmino has been directly involved in more goals in all comps for Liverpool under Jurgen Klopp than any other player (38 goals, 25 assists). Thriving. pic.twitter.com/fcuu5MixNr
Substitution for Swansea: Tammy Abraham replaces Oliver McBurnie.
26 Dec 2017
6:53PM
More pressing play from Liverpool on the break as Trent Alexander-Arnold sweeps up a loose ball before crossing deep into the danger zone – Fabiański gets there first and holds firm before any head dressed in Red can get there.
It’s a sublime finish from Trent Alexander-Arnold to make it 3-0. He races into the edge of the box and blasts a loose ball flying off the underside of the crossbar and in. A stunning strike from the young defender.
Goodness, goodness me — this is turning into an utter rout. Leroy Fer flicks the ball back towards his own defence but none of them are on the receiving end to gather. Mohamed Salah picks up possession, races into the box and side-foots a selfless pass to an unmarked Roberto Firmino who taps in from two yards out to make it 4-0. Unstoppable.
26 Dec 2017
6:58PM
Substitution for Liverpool: Dominic Solanke replaces Roberto Firmino.
26 Dec 2017
6:59PM
I love you more than life itself Roberto Firmino, but FFS, look at the goal when you’re shooting into it! pic.twitter.com/7fi6HqMqqj
Liverpool dominating proceedings now as Coutinho oozes quality at almost every turn. Swansea have long since resigned themselves to defeat. They know they will be leaving Merseyside empty handed and will be happy to keep the scoreline down at this stage of the evening.
Klopp’s side have been magic in this second period following a lull close to the first 45 minute where the hosts looked wasteful. That lack of a clinical edge has been done away with with three superb second-half finishes.
26 Dec 2017
7:06PM
Substitution for Liverpool: James Milner replaces Andrew Robertson.
Substitution for Swansea: Renato Sanches replaces Leroy Fer.
26 Dec 2017
7:11PM
The game is slowly stalling towards its end now. The crowd is going a bit quiet again but this affair is all over. Liverpool are still buzzing around on the pitch following the new lifeblood of Lallana, Miler and Solanke.
However much of this evening’s focus will be on dissecting the dismal showing of Leon Britton’s side and whether or not they have what it takes to turn this sinking ship around in 2018 and maintain their place in the Premier League.
Jurgen Klopp said following his £40 million move to Anfield that Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain needed to add goals to his game, and the ex-Arsenal man has shown his manager he can do just that.
Swansea are on their knees but that should not take away from what was a deft finish from the 24-year-old, who lobbed a brilliant volley into the top corner inside the box following more calamitous defending from the visitors. 5-0 now – will it be even more?
26 Dec 2017
7:17PM
Dominic Solanke almost makes it six with a right-footed volley which narrowly misses the goal. It would have been a carbon-copy of Firmino’s second goal — with Coutinho again instrumental with the cross in the box.
26 Dec 2017
7:18PM
I've run out of words for Coutinho. He's playing against pro footballers and making them look like the fat blokes in my 7-a-side league. Different levels.
The42 has just published its first book, Behind The Lines, a collection of some of the year’s best sports stories. Pick up your copy in Eason’s, or order it here today (€10):
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Close
15 Comments
This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic.
Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy
here
before taking part.
As it happened: Liverpool vs Swansea, Premier League
Hello, and welcome to today’s liveblog.
As always, we’d love to hear your thoughts on the game. E-mail aaron@the42.ie, tweet @the42_ie, post a message to our Facebook wall, or leave a comment below.
You may need to refresh the page for YouTube videos and other elements to display correctly.
Kick off is at 5.30pm.
Let’s start with some team news…
So, today’s teams are:
Liverpool: Mignolet, Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Klavan, Robertson, Oxlade-Chamberlain, Can, Wijnaldum, Salah, Firmino, Coutinho
Subs: Karius, Lovren, Milner, Gomez, Mane, Lallana, Solanke.
Swansea: Fabianski, Naughton, Fernandez, Mawson, Olsson, Fer, Roque, Carroll, Routledge, Ayew, McBurnie.
Subs: Van der Hoorn, Abraham, Dyer, Nordfeldt, Clucas, Rangel, Sanches
Kick-off: We’re underway at Anfield.
Liverpool zipping the ball all around the Anfield surface in these early exchanges. A calm atmosphere in the stands as Swansea are happy to stand off and play the role of spectator.
GOAL! LIVERPOOL 1-0 SWANSEA (COUTINHO 6)
It’s a sublime hit from Philippe Coutinho and the Brazilian really is in the form of his life. Brazilian team-mate Firmino nicks possession 40 yards out from goal before feeding the ball side-ways to the Liverpool number 10.
Coutinho takes one touch to set himself up before curling a stunning effort flying past Fabiański to take an early lead.
Another decent chance for Liverpool as Firmino twists and turns inside the box after cutting side following a through ball from Mohamed Salah. His shot is blocked and then subsequently cleared.
More combination play from Salah, Firmino and Coutinho. As Jamie Carragher says, it’s like a five-a-side move — so precise, so slick. The final ball is poor, however. It falls on the edge of the box to Andrew Robertson who boots a powerful effort wide of the post.
Another chance for Liverpool. Coutinho drops deep and curls a cross aimed towards the back post. Salah tries to get his head to it, but there is just too much on the ball into the danger zone for the winger.
It took three defenders to disposes Salah following another break. He dances with quick feet inside the penalty area and Roque Mesa eventually manages to boot the ball into touch. He was teasing with them there, Salah.
It’s all very pedestrian for Liverpool at the moment. If nothing else can that be seen in the fact that Ragnar Klavan decided on a mazy run which lasted all of 10 yards before he was hauled down — the centre back earning Liverpool a free-kick on half-way. Leon Britton’s side looking very reserved right now.
Mohamed Salah breaks forward at pace but the move breaks down inside the box once again. It was the ideal start with Coutinho’s early thunderbolt, but Jurgen Klopp’s side have squandered a number of chances in succession now, as Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain crashes another effort from range over the bar.
A cross from Wayne Routledge finds no-one inside the box, but that is better from Swansea. For the first time in a long time they exit their own half with the goal in search of the opposition goal.
As that is said, Liverpool break to punish a sloppy Swansea pass via a swift counter. Roberto Firmino tries an effort from range as the space opens up in front of him but it slides wide of the post to no avail.
Liverpool put under a bit of pressure for the first time in this game as space opens up for Oliver McBurnie after he beat two players inside the box. The chance breaks down, however, and comes to nothing. But better again from the visitors as Klopp’s side sit back.
Coutinho with another chance as Liverpool wake up again from their momentary slumber. He dribbles inside the box with that low centre of gravity he possesses and his shot ricochets off a Swansea body and out for a corner — which is easily cleared at the first hurdle.
Anfield is falling desperately quiet this afternoon. The game is being played at a slow, steady pace with odd chances littered every five minutes or so — but for some reason that electric spark is fleeting as individual voices can be heard shouting from the stands.
There will be just two minutes of additional time to come.
Chance! That really should have been 2-0 to Liverpool. It’s very complacent from Roberto Firmino — he cuts onto his right foot but he drags it just wide of the post with only the goalkeeper to beat six yards out from goal.
HALF-TIME: LIVERPOOL 1-0 SWANSEA
Second-half: We’re back underway at Anfield.
An impressive stat if ever there was one.
Early chance! Mohamed Salah dances into the box, cuts inside and tries to curl the ball into the far corner. However Fabiański keeps level with it, dives right and catches it firmly with a well-taken save.
GOAL! LIVERPOOL 2-0 SWANSEA (FIRMINO 52)
It’s another sublime goal with Coutinho instrumental once again. It’s an all-Brazilian move as the number 10 curls in a dangerous free-kick towards the back post where Roberto Firmino knocks the ball with the side of his foot easily past Lukasz Fabiański. 2-0 and Liverpool are up and running for the second half.
A yellow card for Martin Olsson as he hauls down Firmino with an outstretched foot on the edge of the box. The free-kick is straight off the training round — Salah peeling away from his marker at the back post untracked — but his strike curls just side of the bottom corner. Excellent move which earns the plaudits of the Anfield crowd.
A brilliant individual run from Georginio Wijnaldum sees him wander into the box, but he is disposed just as he aimed to pull the trigger and offer an effort on goal to further test Fabiański.
Substitution for Swansea: Tammy Abraham replaces Oliver McBurnie.
More pressing play from Liverpool on the break as Trent Alexander-Arnold sweeps up a loose ball before crossing deep into the danger zone – Fabiański gets there first and holds firm before any head dressed in Red can get there.
GOAL! LIVERPOOL 3-0 SWANSEA (ALEXANDER-ARNOLD 65)
It’s a sublime finish from Trent Alexander-Arnold to make it 3-0. He races into the edge of the box and blasts a loose ball flying off the underside of the crossbar and in. A stunning strike from the young defender.
GOAL! LIVERPOOL 4-0 SWANSEA (FIRMINO 66)
Goodness, goodness me — this is turning into an utter rout. Leroy Fer flicks the ball back towards his own defence but none of them are on the receiving end to gather. Mohamed Salah picks up possession, races into the box and side-foots a selfless pass to an unmarked Roberto Firmino who taps in from two yards out to make it 4-0. Unstoppable.
Substitution for Liverpool: Dominic Solanke replaces Roberto Firmino.
Liverpool dominating proceedings now as Coutinho oozes quality at almost every turn. Swansea have long since resigned themselves to defeat. They know they will be leaving Merseyside empty handed and will be happy to keep the scoreline down at this stage of the evening.
Klopp’s side have been magic in this second period following a lull close to the first 45 minute where the hosts looked wasteful. That lack of a clinical edge has been done away with with three superb second-half finishes.
Substitution for Liverpool: James Milner replaces Andrew Robertson.
Substitution for Swansea: Renato Sanches replaces Leroy Fer.
The game is slowly stalling towards its end now. The crowd is going a bit quiet again but this affair is all over. Liverpool are still buzzing around on the pitch following the new lifeblood of Lallana, Miler and Solanke.
However much of this evening’s focus will be on dissecting the dismal showing of Leon Britton’s side and whether or not they have what it takes to turn this sinking ship around in 2018 and maintain their place in the Premier League.
GOAL! LIVERPOOL 5-0 SWANSEA (OXLADE-CHAMBERLAIN 83)
Jurgen Klopp said following his £40 million move to Anfield that Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain needed to add goals to his game, and the ex-Arsenal man has shown his manager he can do just that.
Swansea are on their knees but that should not take away from what was a deft finish from the 24-year-old, who lobbed a brilliant volley into the top corner inside the box following more calamitous defending from the visitors. 5-0 now – will it be even more?
Dominic Solanke almost makes it six with a right-footed volley which narrowly misses the goal. It would have been a carbon-copy of Firmino’s second goal — with Coutinho again instrumental with the cross in the box.
There will be three minutes of additional time to come.
FULL-TIME: LIVERPOOL 5-0 SWANSEA
The42 has just published its first book, Behind The Lines, a collection of some of the year’s best sports stories. Pick up your copy in Eason’s, or order it here today (€10):
‘Some of the Irish team were spat on as they made their way to the team bus’
The Dublin man who body doubles for Mario Balotelli and Usain Bolt
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
and it's live Anfield Jurgen Klopp Leon Britton Liveblog Liverpool Minute-by-Minute Premier League Swansea Swansea City Liverpool Swansea City Updates