Liverpool vs Fulham 2-2: English Premier League – as it happened

Fulham and Liverpool share points after battling out an intriguing 2-2 draw at Anfield.

We hope you enjoyed it as much as we did and do join us on Sunday for the Manchester derby if you can.

For now, on behalf of Kevin Hand, this is Rohan Sharma signing off.

The league leaders go five points clear at the top 🔝

Ten-man @LFC come from behind twice to take a point at home to Fulham#LIVFUL pic.twitter.com/D3JUYNqtgr

— Premier League (@premierleague) December 14, 2024

Fourth spot is up for grabs at Villa Park and, following the stalemate at Emirates Stadium, a potential winner between Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest would only be a point behind Arsenal in third spot.

That's all from the first half. #NFOAVL pic.twitter.com/R43hYNZB37

— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) December 14, 2024

It doesn’t come any bigger as far as inter-city derbies go in England on Sunday as Manchester City and Manchester United go head-to-head.

Join us for all our usual build-up and comprehensive match coverage of the 4:30pm local time kickoff.

A massive fixture approaches 🔵🆚🔴#MUFC || #PL pic.twitter.com/e39GdnZ4My

— Manchester United (@ManUtd) December 14, 2024

The final four of 2024. 🗓 pic.twitter.com/AScVEUzmPM

— Fulham Football Club (@FulhamFC) December 10, 2024

Liverpool travel to Southampton on Wednesday in the League Cup and follow that with a trip to Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League.

The visit of Leicester City and a game at West Ham, both in the league, end the Reds’ 2024 calendar.

A visibly frustrated Fulham manager, Marco Silva, dissected the match with Sky Sports, “The fouls from Liverpool, they are not red cards? If you see all the game, you are going to find 50-50 [chances] for them, as well.

“If I’m here to talk about 50-50 moments, I will talk about it all day. Our guys did very well. It’s tough to play at Anfield. First 15 minutes was at a very good level with 11 vs 11 [players]. Liverpool reacted strong and from our side we should have reacted better and created more chances.

“If they complain about the red card then I can complain about the first goal because the feedback from Kenny [Tete]. It was a difficult game for us, and it was a difficult game for the referee.”

Liverpool boss Arne Slot spoke with Sky Sports, “I don’t think I could’ve asked for more from my players, especially after going down to 10 men. I couldn’t have asked for more in terms of performance and results.

“Of course, we could have had two points more. At the start of the game, you always want to start intensely. After 30 seconds, one of ours was on the floor and needed treatment for a while so we couldn’t get the intensity [any]more.

“I think Robbo [Andrew Robertson] might have been a bit too injured to keep going because normally he’s faster than that. It says a lot about his character that he wants to keep going, but it results in a red card. I think it’s just whether it was offside?

“It was clear it wasn’t going to be changed. It’s maybe the only thing I didn’t complain about today. It’s an emotional game and we were a man down. It’s good to see our performance after so many setbacks.

“It’s difficult to judge for me because I only see it in real-time like the referee. We have to accept what VAR sees. You know how important these decisions can be. We ended up with a draw and I don’t think we can blame the referee for that.

“There were a few moments when I could have been given a yellow card. It’s marginal moments and when some go against you, you think some will go for you but I haven’t felt that here. There was a moment when one of their players [were] already on a yellow could have been given another.”

Liverpool’s Cody Gakpo, who scored the initial equaliser, spoke with Sky Sports as well, “Obviously an exhausting game for us. We fought really hard to get a result. To end in a draw, we aren’t happy.

“We are very fit. Obviousl,y the crowd helps. We train hard to be ready for those moments when they come about.

“I always know Mo [Mohamed Salah], when he is there, he can always give the ball like this. Great ball, good finish (chuckles).

“[On Slot’s instructions at the half] Yeah, small tactical shifts when we had the ball. More just about the intensity and getting the crowd behind us. We did a good job to put that much energy into the game, and the crowd definitely helped us with that.

“We had some great opportunities at the end, but it just needs to go in the right direction. We were a little unlucky in the finishing, but as a team, we showed the character we had.”

Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk spoke with Sky Sports after the match: “A great comeback is very positive. It’s disappointing having 10 men but we showed [plenty of] fight. [We] kept trying to create chances. Could have been more [goals], but we take the point and move on.

“Stay calm? It’s easier to say than do. It was always going to be tough against them. We saw it last year and last week against Arsenal. We had to turn it around and keep fighting.

“I had conversations with the players of Fulham and we felt like the referee was nervous. He couldn’t properly communicate with Robertson, I felt.

“We can’t put the blame on the referee. We all speak about protecting the referee, but I couldn’t speak to him. It shouldn’t be a big thing because he isn’t why we dropped points.

“It is what it is. We take the points, recover quickly and be ready for the game on Wednesday.”

Liverpool continue to hold top spot with 36 points after 15 matches. Fulham move to ninth place with 24 points.

Mind you, there are still six matches to be played out tomorrow, with the Manchester derby the standout fixture.

We have the final results from the first day of Matchday 16.

• Arsenal 0-0 Everton
• Wolves 1-2 Ipswich Town
• Newcastle 4-0 Leicester City
• Liverpool 2-2 Fulham

Fulham were red-hot out of the gates, with Pereira sending them on their way after 11 minutes of play. Robertson’s red card put the hosts further under the cosh as Fulham continued to dominate.

But once Liverpool returned for the second half, they played with the attacking ferocity that has been synonymous with their campaign so far, ultimately leading to an equaliser from Gakpo.

Muniz put the visitors ahead once more, but Jota, who made his return after a lengthy injury layoff, ensured Liverpool would sneak away with at least a point.

The final 10 minutes provided plenty of intrigue, but the final result was ultimately a fair reflection of the teams’ performance.

It ends level at Anfield. #LIVFUL pic.twitter.com/Abo7hIQ5oO

— Liverpool FC (@LFC) December 14, 2024

As we enter the 10th minute of stoppage time, the referee finally blows the whistle to end what has been one of the most drama-filled matches of the season!

Full-time: Liverpool 2-2 Fulham

Liverpool continue to ride the momentum after Jota’s equaliser. Elliott sends it in from the right side, but underhits it as Fulham are able to clear the danger.

Liverpool regain the ball to try again, but a foul ends that sequence soon after.

90+9 mins: Liverpool 2-2 Fulham

Fulham set off on a counter after Salah is dispossessed. The ball falls to Traore on the right side.

He unleashes a powerful effort towards the near post, but Alisson makes the vital block.

90+6 mins: Liverpool 2-2 Fulham

Liverpool are queueing up now at the Fulham end. First, van Dijk misses from near range, then Jota, and then finally, Diaz gets a touch on the ball, but is deflected over for a right-side corner.

The corner is taken, but Leno is able to quickly recover the rebound after coming off Diop.

90+5 mins: Liverpool 2-2 Fulham

The delivery is provided from the left side, with the ball falling to Salah inside the right of the box.

He tries to get away a shot past Iwobi who is marking him, but ends up sending his shot at his body.

Iwobi continues to struggle as the fourth official signals nine minutes of added time just before.

90+2 mins: Liverpool 2-2 Fulham