Liverpool continued its charge toward the Premier League title with a 2-1 win against Wolverhampton on Sunday. For Manchester United, it just keeps getting worse after a 1-0 loss at Tottenham.
Victory for Liverpool restored its seven-point lead over Arsenal at the top of the table after withstanding a second-half fightback from relegation-threatened Wolves at Anfield.
Man United lost for the 12th time in the league this season and is 15th in the standings after James Maddison's first-half strike for Spurs.
Liverpool had to withstand a fightback from Wolves, which included a brilliant long-range goal from Matheus Cunha.
First-half strikes from Luis Diaz and Mohamed Salah secured the win for Arne Slot's team, but an unconvincing performance after the break saw the home team fail to register a single shot on target as Wolves dominated the chances.
“Obviously 2-0 at halftime, we know that can be one of the most dangerous results in football. We had to come out and we had to start well – and we didn’t quite do that," said Liverpool defender Andrew Robertson. “When they scored, everyone gets nervous. The players get nervous, the crowd get nervous – of course that’s only natural. But it’s a massive win for us and another game down.”
Diaz bundled the ball over the line from close range in the 15th minute to give Liverpool the lead. And Salah doubled the advantage from the penalty spot in the 37th after Diaz was brought down.
It was the Egypt international's 28th goal of an outstanding season and extended his current scoring streak to six straight games.
But if the home crowd was expecting a routine victory against 17th-placed Wolves, it was anything but.
Liverpool conceded a goal in stoppage time to draw 2-2 with Everton on Wednesday and was pushed again.
Cunha's drag-back and curled finish from around 20 yards (meters) in the 67th came after a sustained period of pressure from the visitors.
Before that Marshall Munetsi was denied when through on goal — it took a crucial block in front of goal from Jarell Quansah to prevent him from converting late on.
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James Robson is at https://twitter.com/jamesalanrobson
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
