In a shaky start to the new campaign, Mohamed Salah handed Liverpool a thrilling 4-3 victory over newcomers, Leeds United, with a last-gasp penalty on Saturday afternoon.
Marcelo Bielsa’s men, who were playing their first top-flight fixture in over five years, came from behind on three occasions, as the newly-promoted side locked horns with the current league champions at Anfield.
The game was off to a flyer when Mohamed Salah opened the scoring barely four minutes into the game with a spot-kick, after a handball in the area. The Egyptian has now scored a goal in the first game of a Premier League season for the fourth year running.
English midfielder Jack Harrison soon equalized for Leeds in the 12th minute, after cutting inside and drilling a powerfully struck effort past Liverpool shot-stopper Alisson.
After barely 10 minutes, the Reds were ahead, as Virgil van Dijk guided his header home from a corner. However, they soon drew level when Patrick Bamford found the back of the net when Van Dijk failed to clear out a long pass.
Salah doubled his tally for the afternoon as he finished off a well-worked attacking display with great aplomb. He fired his shot into the roof of the net in the 33rd-minute to ensure the Reds were on top after the goal-ridden first-half.
In the second half, Leeds continued to take the game to Jurgen Klopp’s men, and this time, it was Mateusz Klich who grabbed an equalizer for the new boys in the 66th-minute.
With a draw written all over the game, new signing Rodrigo, who came on as a 62nd-minute substitute, brought down Fabinho in the area. Mohamed Salah stepped up and, of course, calmly slotted home his third of the night, completing his hattrick.
Liverpool has now started their title defense on the front-foot and Jurgen Klopp would undoubtedly hope to build on this victory.
Marcelo Bielsa, on the other hand, has shown his side are here to stay, and with this exhilarating performance against the league champions, perhaps they could be the dark horses for the 2020/21 campaign.
