Mohamed Salah missed a second-half penalty as Liverpool fell to a 1-0 defeat away at Bournemouth, with Philip Billing’s goal lifting them off the bottom of the Premier League table and out of the relegation zone.
The win in the first league game of the weekend sees Bournemouth climb to 16th in the table on 24 points after starting the day rock- bottom. Liverpool, meanwhile, languish in fifth on 42 points after wasting a chance to close the three-point gap to fourth-placed Tottenham Hotspur.
Liverpool started well, with Salah scuffing an early shot goalwards and Cody Gakpo having an effort ruled out for offside.
Bournemouth defender Jefferson Lerma also had to clear a Virgil van Dijk header off the line, but as so often before this season, the wheels quickly came off for the visitors.
Bournemouth’s Dango Outtara fired wide after a one-on-one with Alisson but Liverpool didn’t heed that warning and they paid for it in the 28th minute when he outpaced Van Dijk and squared the ball for Billing, who steered it home.
