Arne Slot continues to work wonders at Liverpool, who return home from a tricky trip to Bournemouth with a hard-earned victory and an overnight nine-point lead at the Premier League summit.
The Reds had to survive some nervy moments at the Vitality Stadium, with the home side twice striking the upright and Alisson Becker needing to produce a couple of outstanding saves to ensure a clean sheet.
In the end it was the clinical nature of Mo Salah which decided the game, with the Egyptian convering a 30th-minute penalty and then scoring a ‘stunning‘ goal in the second half, in the words of BBC pundit Pat Nevin.
Slot left in awe of Salah stunner
Slot had already seen Liverpool’s number 11 score 24 times this season prior to the latter moment, but even the 46-year-old was left in awe of the quality of the finish.
The cameras captured his immedate reaction to Salah’s second goal, with the Reds boss roaring in delight and clenching his fists as he celebrated with a group hug among his coaching staff in the technical area.
Salah’s second goal felt massive for Slot and Liverpool
It wasn’t just the brilliance of the finish which thrilled the Dutchman, but also the significance of the strike in sealing a hard-earned result for the visitors.
Prior to today, Bournemouth hadn’t lost in any competition since 23 November and had thumped third-placed Nottingham Forest 5-0 only a week ago, so this victory at the Vitality Stadium will feel like a massive three points for Liverpool.
It also piles the pressure back on Arsenal to respond tomorrow when they host Manchester City, who’ve enjoyed a revival since the turn of the year following a wretched end to 2024.
The Reds aren’t in Premier League action for another 11 days, with two cup fixtures in the meantime to divert attention away from the title charge, so for now Slot and LFC fans can simply enjoy this result and savour the fact that Mo Salah plays for this iconic club.
You can check out Slot’s reacon to the second Salah goal below, via @n1918229 on X:
pic.twitter.com/eHdoK4SODH
— hae (@n1918229) February 1, 2025
