Mohamed Salah scored twice in the second half to put Liverpool eight points clear at the top of the Premier League, but they did everything they could to beat bottom club Southampton.

They trailed 2–1 with 25 minutes remaining, but a smart first finish from Salah brought Arne Slot’s team level before he smashed home a penalty in the 83rd minute to secure the win.

Dominik Szoboszlai put Liverpool ahead after just half an hour as Southampton’s insistence on playing at the back cost them dearly, and it looked like a routine win was on the cards. But the home side were level three minutes before half-time when Andy Robertson’s foul on Tyler Dibling was judged to have taken place just inside the penalty area. Adam Armstrong’s penalty was saved by Caoimhin Kelleher, but the striker converted the rebound.

Things got even better for Southampton eleven minutes after half-time when Mateus Fernandes completed the excellent work of Dibling and Armstrong.

Slot soon introduced Luis Diaz and Alexis Mac Allister for Cody Gakpo and Curtis Jones, and although Diaz had created a great chance within a minute of his introduction, Liverpool were level in the 65th minute when Salah coolly poked past advancing goalkeeper Alex McCarthy .

The Egyptian attacker then converted from 12 meters after Yukinari Sugawara acted unnecessarily in the penalty area.

Liverpool face tougher tests next week, with Real Madrid and Manchester City both visiting Anfield, but Slot’s team are firmly in first place in both the Premier League and Champions League.

The Athletics‘s Andy Jones analyzes the talking points.

Where has been the solid Liverpool of the Slot era so far?

Liverpool went into this match with the best defensive record in the league, but looked a shadow of the solid structure Slot has implemented since his arrival in the summer.

The defensive unit, led by centre-backs Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate, exuded composure during the first part of the season, conceding just six goals in the first eleven games. Yet today they were anything but a confident, steady force against a Southampton side who had scored just seven goals in the same number of games.

Striker Paul Onuachu was a surprise selection for Russell Martin and he used his strength and length to unsettle Liverpool’s centre-backs early on and help Southampton go higher. Konate received a yellow card after one foul.

Konate struggled to deal with Armstrong and Onuachu (Robin Jones/Getty Images)

The compact shape also came to the fore, with Southampton’s midfielders finding enough space centrally to drive forward.

Dibling was the home side’s most impressive player, Liverpool couldn’t live with his ball carrying and he was crucial for Southampton’s second goal. He beat Szoboszlai with a forward ball and worked it to Armstrong, who set up Fernandes.

It was a sloppy performance from Liverpool throughout the game, but with tough tests looming, Slot must ensure today’s defensive problems are just a blip and not the start of a theme.

Can Liverpool afford to lose Salah?

When Liverpool needed one of their big players to dig them out of a hole, the Egyptian stepped up again.

There was some luck in the way they regained the lead when Salah raced onto a pass over the top and tapped it into an empty net after McCarthy had left his goal to try to reach the ball first, but he also let the chance go simple corpses.

But there was no doubt about his second as he fired home a late penalty with conviction, given after a handball from Suguwara.

That took him to ten Premier League goals this season and his only disappointment will be not coming away with the match ball after completing a hat-trick. In the first half he missed a number of reasonable chances, before hitting the post late on.

If Liverpool’s hierarchy were sensible, they would try to tie him down to a contract extension to replace the deal that expires next summer, as soon as possible. Because the longer they wait, the more Salah strengthens his case.

Even at the age of 32, he remains indispensable.

Was it a penalty for Southampton’s equaliser?

When Robertson fouled Dibling just before half-time, referee Samuel Barrott took his time before pointing to the spot.

It was the tightest call. The first replays showed that the foul had occurred outside the 18-metre area. Subsequently, zoomed-in slow-motion footage of the incident showed Dibling’s toe was on the Liverpool area line as Robertson made his challenge.

Michael Oliver, the match’s VAR, who was criticized last month after telling referee David Coote to go to the screen for West Ham United’s late penalty that secured a win against Manchester United, said there was no conclusive evidence that the contact took place outside the area. the decision on the field stood.

(Courtesy of NBC Sports Soccer on X)

Liverpool had only themselves to blame for the situation, with Van Dijk carelessly losing possession on the halfway line via an unnecessary tap, and Robertson setting up for the tackle as Dibling was forced wide.

Kelleher almost made up for it by saving Armstrong’s penalty, but the striker reacted quickest and made it 1-1 by scoring the rebound.

What did Arne Slot say?

We’ll bring this to you after he speaks at the post-match press conference.

What next for Liverpool?

Wednesday November 27: Real Madrid (H), Champions League, 8pm UK, 3pm ET

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(Top photo: Justin Tallis/AFP via Getty Images)