LIVERPOOL’S 44-game run without defeat in the Premier League came to a crashing end as relegation-threatened Watford thrashed the European champions 3-0 on Saturday.
Ismaila Sarr’s double and Troy Deeney’s strike 18 minutes from time ended Liverpool’s hopes of romping to a first league title in 30 years with an unbeaten season as they lost in the league for the first time since January 2019.
Jurgen Klopp’s men still enjoy a 22-point lead at the top of the table, but their sluggish return from a two-week winter break earlier this month was finally punished.
After single-goal victories over struggling Norwich and West Ham either side of a Champions League defeat at Atletico Madrid, Liverpool were comprehensively beaten at Vicarage Road.
A 55-point gap separated the sides before kick-off, but the out-of-sorts visitors failed to muster even a single effort on goal in the first 45 minutes.
Gerard Deulofeu’s dipping effort just did not come down in time as it landed on the roof of the net before he teed up Abdoulaye Doucoure, who saw his shot deflected behind by Virgil van Dijk.
1985 - Liverpool's defeat was the heaviest suffered by a team top of the top-flight table against an opponent in the relegation zone since Leicester beat Manchester United 3-0 on November 23rd 1985. Astounding. pic.twitter.com/jhUZsycIZi
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) February 29, 2020
Deulofeu then had to be stretchered off with a nasty looking knee injury that seems certain to end his season.
Watford’s heads did not drop without one of their most dangerous players, though, as only Alisson Becker’s fleetness of foot allowed the Brazilian international to save from Deeney deep into first-half stoppage time.
Andy Robertson’s driven effort finally forced Ben Foster into a save early in the second half, but just as Liverpool were beginning to build up a head of steam, they were stung by two quick strikes by Sarr.
Firstly, the Senegalese beat Robertson to Doucoure’s low cross to stab home at the near post.
Six minutes later, Sarr had too much pace for a flat-footed Liverpool defence as he raced onto Deeney’s through ball and showed fantastic composure to lift the ball over the advancing Alisson.
Sarr also had a big part to play in Watford’s third as he pounced on a short passback and had the vision to pick out Deeney, who lofted the ball nonchalantly over Alisson to make it 3-0.
44 - Liverpool have lost a Premier League game for the first time since January 2019, ending their 44-game unbeaten run in the competition. Stunned. pic.twitter.com/Wvj5Uesuf7
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) February 29, 2020
Watford had thrown away a lead in three of their last four Premier League games to fall back into the bottom three.
But they never looked in any danger of doing so again as they moved back out of the relegation zone on goal difference.
Sarr should even have had a famous hat-trick with his final touch as he curled wide when one-on-one with Alisson.
However, that was the only gloss missing from a glorious night for Watford as Liverpool remain four wins away from the title.
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Hardly world beaters, especially going forward
@COYBIG: two evenly matched teams tomorrow so
I think travelling to Georgia will affect them. It’s a long journey. We have a chance.
@prop joe: good pt. I had not considered that. I think we will beat them.
Havent lost to these since 92. No Bale wine rate since 2012 is 9%.
Believe
Coybig
We will beat this shower tomorrow COYBIG! The welsh think the only have to turn up to beat us!
Whats the team photo about?
@Jane: It’s something Wales have been doing for a couple of years now as a bit of a joke, they deliberately take terrible team photos. Go back through all their qualifiers and you’ll see some with one player kneeling and the rest standing, and the opposite. Leaving gaps like that etc. No idea what it’s about.
@Eanna Costello: I’d never noticed it before, thanks
@Eanna Costello: I think they did one bad photo by mistake and just kept it going then for a laugh
@Jane:
More examples here. It’s gas really.
https://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2017/1008/910725-the-wonders-of-the-wales-team-photo-what-is-going-on/
Seems like you guys think you have this in the bag already.
To put some perspective here – Wales have lost 3 games since 2013 when Bale wasn’t playing. Two of those were friendlies when other players including Ramsey were also not available, and the other one was after we’d already qualified for the Euros.
We haven’t lost a game since the 2016 Euros Semi final, we’ve kept a clean sheet for the last 3 games which we won, and tomorrow night we’re playing at home.
So despite the dismissive remarks above, Wales may pull off a huge upset.
@Saul Hamilton Evans: “not world beaters” “evenly matched” “we have a chance”. How is that us thinking its in the bag or dismissive of Wales? I think nearly all Irish fans thinks Wales are favourites but as said above, we go to Cardiff with a chance.
@Paul P O’Sullivan: is focain bómán é.
He’s a clown