LONDON: Five straight home losses for the first time in the club’s 128-year history. More than 10 hours since a goal from open play at Anfield.

The stadium that was once a fortress for Liverpool is the now the scene of a scarcely believable implosion by the soon-to-be-deposed English champions.

Liverpool’s 1-0 loss to Chelsea on Thursday continued a staggering run of home form over the past six weeks, after Jurgen Klopp’s team had previously gone 68 games in a row unbeaten at Anfield.

Formerly the owners of one of Europe’s most devastating attacks, Liverpool only managed one effort on goal against Chelsea — a weak header in the 85th minute. Mohamed Salah was substituted after barely an hour; Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino barely threatened either.

Mason Mount scored the winner in the 42nd minute, cutting in from the left and curling home from the edge of the area for a goal that sent Chelsea into the top four, one point clear of fifth placed Everton who have a game in hand on the west Londoners.

It was a first win at Anfield since 2014 for Chelsea, which is a team transformed under Thomas Tuchel and have gone 10 matches unbeaten since the German arrived as Frank Lampard’s replacement.

“It was a very good team performance. It was a six-point game because the others lose,” Tuchel said. “We played with courage, had excellent moments with the ball and never lost the attitude and desire. The race is on. We can never rest and never celebrate. There is no time.”

Qualifying for the Champions League looks to be increasingly unlikely for Liverpool, who are languishing in seventh place, four points behind Chelsea after losing five of their last six league matches.

“It’s a massive blow,” Klopp said. “If you lose that many games, you don’t have the right to go to the Champions League.”

Eight months after winning the Premier League by 18 points, Liverpool are 22 points behind first-place Manchester City.

“To get back to where you get these moments, you have to work, be stubborn and fight hard,” Klopp said. “We will get there again because it is still in the boys.

“It is not about Anfield or whatever, it is in general, too often. In the decisive moments we have to improve. We have to show our quality in these moments and we don’t do that often enough.”

After Chelsea’s Timo Werner was denied by the narrowest of offside decisions, Mane missed a sitter.

Chelsea took the lead when N’Golo Kante launched a high pass towards Mount and the England midfielder leaft Fabinho trailing in his wake before curling a superb finish into the bottom corner.

EVERTON BOOST TOP FOUR BID

Carlo Ancelotti is part of Champions League folklore as one of only three managers to have won Europe’s elite competition three times. He might be back in it with Everton next season.

Everton extended their unbeaten away record to nine games by beating West Bromwich Albion 1-0 and climbed above Liverpool and West Ham into fifth place.

Richarlison headed home from Gylfi Sigurdsson’s 65th minute cross as the Brazilian netted for the fourth time in as many games after scoring just twice in the league this season before that run.

“We’re doing well and now we’re in the fight at the top of the table. The season is still long but we are there and pleased to be there,” Ancelotti said.

Second bottom Albion, who had a late Mbaye Diagne effort disallowed for offside, remain nine points adrift of safety as they slide towards relegation.

Dele Alli delivered in his first league start since the opening day of the season as Tottenham Hotspur won 1-0 at Fulham.

Alli was not credited with his first league goal for just short of a year as his effort deflected off Tosin Adarabioyo into his own net.

Fulham’s Josh Maja saw his effort harshly disallowed for a handball by Mario Lemina, but eighth-placed Tottenham held on to move within five points of the top four with a game in hand.

“In the end it was not a very different game from some we had and we managed to concede late goals,” Tottenham manager Jose Mourinho. “Against Palace, Wolves, Newcastle, we concede late goals that took points away from us. Tonight was different, tonight we kept it.”

Gareth Bale and Alli have struggled for form and fitness this season and have largely been bystanders as Son Heung-min and Harry Kane kept Tottenham’s chances of a place in the Champions League next season alive.

However, after Bale struck twice in a 4-0 thrashing of Burnley on Sunday, all four started together for the first time in a Premier League game as Mourinho finally let off the handbrake on his attacking talents.

Three of the front four combined for the only goal as Bale’s pass picked out the run of Son and his cross appeared to have been turned in by Alli only for the final touch to come off Adarabioyo.

Published in Dawn, March 6th, 2021