AFP/London
Liverpool squandered an early lead and lost 3-1 at Crystal Palace while Tottenham Hotspur came from behind to beat Hull City 2-1 as two of the Premier League’s big boys experienced contrasting fortunes against the lesser lights yesterday.
Spurs needed a 90th minute goal from Christian Eriksen to win at Hull, who took the lead through former Spurs midfielder Jake Livermore after nine minutes but lost their way after Gaston Ramires was sent off after 50 minutes.
Spurs dominated from then on, equalising through Harry Kane after 61 minutes when he was first to react after an Eriksen free kick rebounded back off a post, before the Dane scored the winner in the dying minutes.
Palace condemned Liverpool to a third straight league defeat beating them with goals from Dwight Gayle, Joe Ledley and a superb curling free kick from Mile Jedinak after Rickie Lambert scored his first goal for the club to put them ahead in the second minute. The results saw Palace move up from 19th to 15th while Spurs climbed from 12th to 10th. Liverpool slipped from 11th to 12th while Hull dropped a place from 5th to 16th.
Rickie Lambert scored his first Liverpool goal to put the visitors ahead inside two minutes, but Dwight Gayle—who scored twice in the 3-3 draw—equalised 15 minutes later. With the visitors once again toiling in attack, Ledley and Jedinak scored twice in the last 12 minutes to condemn Liverpool to three consecutive league defeats for the first time since April 2012.
“We’re low on confidence at the moment in terms of the results and I think that sort of tempo and intensity of our game has just dropped right off,” said Rodgers, whose side have lost their last four games in all competitions. “Obviously we concede poor goals, but we have no-one to blame but ourselves. As the manager, I take full responsibility for that.”
Rodgers’s team, who finished second to Manchester City last season, now sit in 12th place, a huge 18 points below leaders Chelsea, and face a crucial Champions League game away to Ludogorets Razgrad on Wednesday. It was a first win in six matches for Neil Warnock’s Palace, who leapt out of the relegation zone and up to 15th.
“It’s massive. We needed that, big time,” Palace captain Jedinak told Sky Sports. “We knew it was going to be a difficult game. We didn’t help ourselves by conceding so early on, but I think the reaction from the boys after that was first-class.”
A groin injury to Mario Balotelli saw Lambert handed only his second league start for Liverpool and he quickly made his presence felt on a sodden afternoon.
With barely 90 seconds on the clock, Adam Lallana hoisted a pass over the Palace defence to his former Southampton team-mate, who ghosted in behind Liverpool old boy Martin Kelly before beating Julian Speroni.
But just like last season, Palace refused to lie down, equalising in the 17th minute when Gayle followed up after Yannick Bolasie’s skidding low shot cannoned back into play off the left-hand upright.
It took a last-ditch block from Javier Manquillo to prevent Bolasie from putting Palace ahead shortly before half-time, but with Liverpool toothless in attack, it was the hosts who eventually prevailed.
Bolasie was again the creator for their second goal, in the 78th minute, brilliantly flicking the ball over Dejan Lovren wide on the Palace right and crossing for Ledley to slot a first-time shot between Simon Mignolet’s legs.
Liverpool’s misery was complete three minutes later when Jedinak arced a glorious 25-yard free-kick into the top-right corner to end his side’s five-game winless run in style.
In the day’s other game, Danish playmaker Christian Eriksen scored a fine 90th-minute winner to earn Tottenham Hotspur a morale-boosting 2-1 win away to 10-man Hull City.
Former Spurs midfielder Jake Livermore fired Hull ahead in the eighth minute, but the hosts lost Gaston Ramirez early in the second period after he was sent off for kicking out at Jan Vertonghen. Harry Kane equalised in the 61st minute, sweeping home after Eriksen’s free-kick hit the post, before the Dane drove in a late winner that left Mauricio Pochettino’s side in 10th place.
Chelsea moved seven points clear at the summit by beating West Bromwich Albion 2-0 on Saturday, although second-place Southampton can trim the gap back to four points by winning at Aston Villa today.
Crystal Palace’s Joe Ledley (2nd L) vies with Liverpool’s Raheem Sterling during the English Premier League match at Selhurst Park in south London yes
