The head of late Origi keeps Liverpool's hopes alive

NEWCASTLE, England, (Reuters) – In a captivating title race, Liverpool showed it was ready to push Manchester City into the final seconds of the season with its 3-2 win at Newcastle United.

The substitute head in the 86th minute of his replacement Divock Origi ensured victory but, in many ways, it was also the will and courage of the team of Juergen Klopp that ensured the three essential points.

The result gives Liverpool a two-point advantage over Manchester City, but Pep Guardiola's team still has two games to play, including Monday's home match against Leicester City, while Liverpool has one more match – his last home game against the Wolves.

No Premier League table has ever looked like eight days before the end of the season: Liverpool has 94 points and City 92 – Tottenham, third, is more than 20 points behind.

A draw in Liverpool would have given City a margin of error in its last two games – and it's hard to imagine that it would have let him slip on a trip to Brighton on the last day.

But Liverpool would not let this season, where he was beaten once in the league, end at St James's Park against former club coach Rafa Benitez.

"What the boys have done is incredible," said Klopp, who seemed moved by what he had seen.

Enough against Liverpool this week that a little deflation could have been forgiven.

Liverpool started without Brazilian striker Roberto Firmino, injured, and then in the second half lost his Egyptian talismanic striker, Mohamed Salah, who was taken on a stretcher after an aerial clash with Newcastle goalkeeper Martin Dubravka.

All this after the 3-0 defeat to Barcelona in the semi-finals of the Champions League on Wednesday.

HEADERING HEADER

But instead of doubting, instead of surrender, an eighth straight Premier League win allowed the Klopp team to stay in the race and put pressure on City again.

The evening began in a relatively routine manner – Virgil Van Dijk led Liverpool in the 13th minute after losing his marker and meeting Trent Alexander-Arnold's corner with a thundering header.

Seven minutes later, Newcastle found the same goal as the shot by Salomon Rondon, but before the referee had time to award a penalty – and surely punished the defender – Christian Atsu had fired a loose shot.

Newcastle was now full of conviction and energy and when the lively Ayoze Perez shook the Liverpool bar with fierce energy, the momentum seemed to have reversed.

But this Liverpool team has a habit of reversing the trend and did it very quickly.

Daniel Sturridge, starting from Firmino, centered the ball in corner corner at Alexander-Arnold and the center of the center was expertly handed over by Salah.

Newcastle was not in the mood to overturn and, nine minutes after the break, the ball equalized when Liverpool failed to clear a corner and that formidable practice of Rondon's left foot beat Alisson Becker without defense, on the score of 2-2.

Then, Salah was expelled instead and was sent to his place, the imposing Belgian Origi, who does not live up to Salah's invention, but offers the kind of physical presence that can be so valuable when the game becomes a battle.

Four minutes from the end of regulation time, Xherdan Shaqiri, who had been featured at the break, hit the ball from a free-kick to the right and Origi rose magnificently. His head was projected by Newcastle defender, Jamaal Lascelles, in the net.

Liverpool fans, perched so high in Leazes' booth, were delirious – they had felt hopelessly lost in despair and suddenly the conviction was back.

Newcastle deserves an important credit for a combative display, when they had little to play for having already managed to survive and it was not the most complete Liverpool performance, they showed the essential qualities that are most needed when the pressure is high and the legs are high. tired.