Salah’s penalty downs Villa as Liverpool deny Gerrard a happy Anfield return | Premier League

The milestones polished another three precious points for Liverpool – a 21st goal of the season for Mohamed Salah, the team scoring for a club record equalling 31 games in succession and taking Jürgen Klopp beyond 500 points in the Premier League – but this was an arduous battle against Aston Villa. Steven Gerrard’s new team gave his old club no quarter, it was never going to be any other way, only to fall to the second defeat of his reign courtesy of Salah’s second half penalty.

Gerrard treated his first competitive appearance at Anfield in six years with a predictable minimum of fuss. There was prolonged applause to the Villa faithful after he emerged from the tunnel and a little wave of acknowledgement to the Kop before getting down to the business of frustrating his former club. Villa succeeded in that regard, absorbing pressure, working tirelessly and rarely being pulled out of shape. Klopp spent most of the first half haranguing the fourth official, Graham Scott, over what he perceived as referee Stuart Attwell’s leniency but the lack of cutting edge from his title chasers would also have been a cause of irritation.

With Divock Origi joining Roberto Firmino on the injury list and Diogo Jota nursing a knock on the bench the Liverpool manager opted to deploy Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain as a false nine with Jordan Henderson granted more licence than usual to get forward. The absence of a recognised striker told in the first half, despite the impressive efforts of Sadio Mané, with Salah on the margins of the contest and several inviting crosses going unpunished in front of Emiliano Martínez’s goal.

Liverpool’s first real chance of a dominant opening spell fell to Trent Alexander-Arnold when Salah dummied another of Andy Robertson’s dangerous balls along the edge of the penalty area. His fellow full-back connected cleanly and accurately only for Matt Targett to deflect the shot wide. Alexander-Arnold returned the favour with a deep cross that Robertson turned goalwards with a diving header. Martinez saved well at his near post when almost caught out by a deflection off Matthew Cash. Oxlade-Chamberlain curled a 20-yard shot narrowly over after Mané had dispossessed Marvelous Nakamba in midfield, prompting Villa’s defensive shield to clatter into Henderson for a yellow card.

Three rejected penalty appeals before half-time did little for Klopp’s mood, although none of the claims were water-tight. Mané went down when touched on the shoulder by Cash having played a sharp one-two with Salah. Robertson, having cut inside Cash at the end of an incisive Liverpool counterattack, felt he was felled by a combination of the right-back and Douglas Luiz. Seconds later he went down again when challenging for a Henderson cross with Nakamba at the back post. Robertson’s first shout was the strongest of the three but Attwell was unmoved on each occasion.

Though disciplined in organisation and faultless in industry, Villa’s inability to ease the pressure on their defence must have worried Gerrard. His midfield three of John McGinn, Nakamba and Luiz were sloppy in possession, albeit in the face of a relentless Liverpool press, while Ollie Watkins was often too isolated from Ashley Young and Jacob Ramsey to threaten. When Young did break through on the left and nodded the ball beyond the advancing Alisson, Joel Matip was on hand to intercept his attempted cross to Watkins. Young, afforded the customary Anfield reception for a former Manchester United player, also blazed over from the edge of the area. Luiz squandered an opportunity to test Alisson when dragging a dangerous free-kick into the side-netting from a tight angle.

Traffic flowed mainly in the direction of Martínez’s goal, however. Salah saw little of the ball in the first half but almost scored when Fabinho’s lofted ball presented him with a first chance to attack Tyrone Mings. Liverpool’s leading goalscorer cut inside the Villa captain and forced the keeper to save well at his near post. Martínez denied Liverpool again early in the second half when Virgil van Dijk rose highest at a Robertson corner and sent a thumping header towards the roof of the net. The Argentina international tipped over from close range.

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Liverpool pressure and penalty appeals finally told when Salah took on Mings again from the right. The Egypt international slipped into the area past the England defender, who stumbled as he tried to recover ground and clipped Salah’s left leg in the process. This time Attwell had no hesitation in pointing to the spot. Salah drilled the spot-kick so accurately that Martínez did not get close to the ball as it cannoned in off the inside of his left-hand post despite diving the right way.

Villa responded well with the introductions of Emiliano Buendia, Morgan Sanson and Danny Ings injecting greater menace and energy into the attack. Alisson was fortunate to escape four minutes from time when he smashed a clearance into Matip as the defender held off Ings and then, in a desperate attempt to stop the former Liverpool striker converting, just clawed the ball away before making contact with the player. But Liverpool, and Salah, roll on.