Despite losing the advantage of leading twice, Liverpool still left St. Petersburg. James' Park won thanks to goals from Van Dijk, Salah and Origi. Thereby, Jurgen Klopp's team temporarily rose to the top of the Premier League with 94 points.
They are 2 points ahead of Man City and have played 1 more game.
Liverpool fortunately did not lose a player early
Christian Atsu was the author of the 1-1 equalizer for Newcastle in the 20th minute. However, Salomon Rondon should have scored a goal earlier if Alexander-Arnold's arm had not blocked the ball into the visitors' net.
Newcastle players did not complain to referee Andre Marriner when Atsu successfully rebounded. It seems that the referee team did not detect this situation. However, the possibility of Alexander-Arnold receiving a direct red card and the home team being awarded a penalty is entirely possible.
The "king" of the dead ball
Van Dijk and Origi's goals in this match came from set pieces. Thereby, Liverpool have scored 23 goals in the Premier League this season from dead balls, including penalties. This is also the best result in the tournament.
In addition, Van Dijk has also increased his scoring record in the Premier League this season to 4. The Dutch midfielder affirmed that he is not only important for Liverpool in defense but also in attack.
Salah's injury
The Kop leave St. Petersburg. James' Park with all 3 points but the price they have to pay is Mohamed Salah's injury in the middle of the second half. The Egyptian was forced off after an aerial dispute with goalkeeper Dubravka.
For that reason, the possibility of Salah being absent in the second leg of the UEFA Champions League semi-final against Barcelona is not small. If this happens, Liverpool's comeback against Messi and his teammates after losing 0-3 in the first leg will be more difficult than ever.
At the same time as Liverpool, Barcelona surprisingly lost 0-2 to Celta Vigo at La Liga. However, the Catalan team's lineup had a huge change when Messi, Luis Suarez, Gerard Pique, Busquets, Rakitic and Jordi Alba were not on the list of registered players.
Coach Valverde's team will clearly be more energetic than the "Red Brigade" in the second leg.
Newcastle deserves to be praised
Despite successfully staying in the league, coach Rafael Benitez and his team did not disappoint the fans with their competitive spirit. Proactively dropping deep into the squad, Newcastle is still ready to cause a surprise in counter-attacks.
The equalizations between Atsu and Rondon were the clearest result. They had a chance to take the lead in the 26th minute when the ball hit the crossbar of Alisson's goal after Ayoze Perez's shot.
The script is not over yet
Liverpool temporarily took the top spot, putting pressure on Man City in the latest match of the round. The Citizens will host Leicester, the opponent they lost to 1-2 in the first leg. The Foxes striker Jamie Vardy is not only in good form but also has the potential to score against big teams.
Regardless of Man City's result in this round, the Premier League throne will certainly only be determined after round 38 (May 12). That will be the most dramatic ending of the season.
