LONDON: Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson made the 80-metre journey into West Bromwich Albion’s penalty area, more in hope than any expectation of scoring the stoppage-time goal that would keep alive his team’s chances of qualifying for the Champions League.

After all, he’d never scored a goal in his career. No Liverpool keeper had in the club’s 129-year history.

One textbook header from a corner changed all that.

In one of the most sensational moments of this or any Premier League season, Alisson with his gloves on and unmissable in his black shirt and shorts found space in the middle of the area to glance a header into the bottom corner from a perfect delivery by Trent Alexander-Arnold and secure Liverpool a dramatic 2-1 win on Sunday.

It came in the fifth minute of added-on time and was delivered with the technique of an established striker.

Alisson got up off the ground and was immediately mobbed by his teammates. Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp was speechless in his technical area.

A goalkeeper had scored for just the sixth time in Premier League history none of the previous five had been a winner.

And Liverpool, against all the odds, could dream once again of the Champions League with one week left of the season.

“You can’t explain a lot of things in life,” the Brazil international said. “For me, the only reason for those typ­es of things is God he put his hand on my head today and I’m feeling really blessed.”

Without that goal, Liverpool would have been on course to miss out on finishing in the top four, their destiny no longer in their players’ hands.

The already-relegated Ba­g­gies took an early lead through Hal Robson-Kanu before the in-form Mohamed Salah equalised before half-time.

With two games remaining Liverpool are in fifth spot on 63 points, one point behind Chelsea and three behind Leicester City and with those two playing each other in midweek, Liverpool know that two wins would see them in the top four to qualify for the Champions League — a prospect that looked unlikely two weeks ago.

“What a goal, what a worldie and unbelievable goal, the technique was insane,” Klopp said. “It couldn’t have been a better moment, it’s just perfect for today. If he is never doing it again, I’m fine. It’s a perfect moment.”

Liverpool were stunned when Robson-Kanu, making his first league start of the season for Albion, put the hosts ahead in the 15th minute after he ran onto Matheus Pereira’s pass and found the bottom corner at the Hawthorns.

Liverpool levelled when Sadio Mane, starting in place of the injured Diogo Jota, intercepted a loose pass to Kyle Bartley, with the ball then falling to Salah, who hit a first-time shot into the bottom left corner.

Everton’s woeful home form struck again as they were downed 1-0 by bottom club Sheffield United — for whom 17-year-old Daniel Jebbison became the youngest player to score on his first Premier League start.

They have now lost nine league games at home this season and have picked up only six points at Goodison Park in 2021.

Defeat left them in eighth spot, three points behind West Ham United and Tottenham Hotspur.

“We played so bad. The only result that could be possible is a defeat. As we usually did at home most of the time, we lost,” Everton boss Carlo Ancelotti said. “I have to take responsibly for this but I hope the players do too.”

Tottenham beat Wolverhampton Wanderers 2-0 with Harry Kane scoring his 22nd Premier League goal of the season as his side moved above West Ham on goal difference. Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg scored Tottenham’s second.

In the day’s other game Crystal Palace twice came from a goal behind to beat Aston Villa 3-2 — Tyrick Mitchell scoring the winner late on with his first career goal.

Published in Dawn, May 18th, 2021