Fulham held Liverpool to a dramatic 2-2 draw on Sunday when Harrison Reed scored a stunning stoppage-time equalizer just before Cody Gakpo had given it.
In stoppage time, Gakpo’s fourth goal in stoppage time appeared to have set Liverpool on the right path to victory at Craven Cottage.
However, Reed’s superb long-range effort allowed Fulham to fall short of Liverpool’s goal of placing in the top four of the Premier League.
Arne Slot’s side had a 2-0 lead before Harry Wilson’s first-half goal on a contentious afternoon in west London.
After VAR rejected Wilson’s initial offside decision, Fulham’s opener had been given.
Although Florian Wirtz’s leveller appeared to be the right choice, much more was in doubt.
Fulham’s players were so confident that the decision was made that they almost stopped before Wirtz fired his shot because the German had originally been ruled offside.
Even though Wirtz’ foot appeared to be offside, the VAR official disagreed, saying that the player was onside by the narrowest of margins.
Before making a trip to Premier League leaders Arsenal on Thursday, fourth-placed Liverpool are currently unbeaten in their last nine games overall.
Following their goalless draw with Leeds on January 1st, the Reds produced yet another far from convincing performance.
With Hugo Ekitike out with a hamstring injury and Mohamed Salah with an injury to the Africa Cup of Nations, Slot used Wirtz, Gakpo, and Dominik Szoboszlai in his makeshift attack.
Drama at the passing
Liverpool immediately appeared out of sync after the kick-off was delayed by 15 minutes as a result of a medical emergency at Craven Cottage.
With a deflected strike that sailed wide before making a quick finish on Curtis Jones’ pass, Gakpo wasted two early opportunities.
Raul Jimenez’s pass to Fulham offside prevented Liverpool from fumbling their way into the 17th minute.
Wilson sprinted onto the through ball to send a composed finish past Alisson Becker while Virgil van Dijk was flat-footed.
Before a VAR check, Wilson was able to celebrate scoring against his former club, the goal was initially denied for offside.
Early in the second half, Alexis Mac Allister’s thumping header from Szoboszlai’s corner almost put an end to Liverpool’s malaise.
Liverpool’s 57th-minute equalizer was inspired by that.
Conor Bradley slipped a pass to Wirtz, who slotted into the far corner from six yards out, breaking through the Fulham defense’s cage.
The German celebrated his second goal since joining Bayer Leverkusen in the summer, but his celebrations were initially halted by the offside flag.
When Jimenez couldn’t finish, Wilson chipped the rebound onto the bar before Van Dijk cleared the follow-up off the line, giving Liverpool an incredible escape.
When Gakpo prodded Jeremie Frimpong’s cross from close range in the final moments, they looked determined to make the most of that let-off.
Source: Channels TV
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