43 min Fulham were having their best spell when Ngumoha scored. Now they\u2019re in danger of being finished off before half-time. Ngumoha tees up Robertson for a shot on the half turn that is saved to his right by Leno.<\/p>\n
Share<\/a><\/p>\n 43 min \u201cRobster!\u201d writes Simon McMahon. \u201cI\u2019m high on crack life after a last kick winner for Dundee United today, and also the fact that it\u2019s Masters Saturday Andrew \u2018Andy\u2019 Robertson is starting for Liverpool<\/a>. He might be my favourite player of the last 15 years. The season he spent at Tannadice seems like a distant dream, but a very pleasant one.<\/p>\n \u201cWill never forget this goal he scored, I watched him all the way as he made his way forward before drilling a shot into the corner. If the net hadn\u2019t been there it would have made its way to me as I stood open mouthed, like he knew I was watching and was trying to pass to me. He celebrated right in front of me and my daughter, who was about 15 at the time, not an awful lot younger than him. Happy days.<\/p>\n \u201cI guess, even after the career high of a Scottish Cup final to defeat to St. Johnstone in 2014, he\u2019s done alright for himself since he left, and even though we\u2019ve been relegated twice in the decade since, I\u2019d still have him back.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a013.13 EDT<\/p>\n 42 min That\u2019s Mo Salah\u2019s 256th goal for Liverpool<\/a>. Two hundred and fifty blooming six.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a013.12 EDT<\/p>\n GOAL! Liverpool 2-0 Fulham (Salah 40)<\/p>\n Mo Salah makes it two! It was almost a mirror image of Ngumoha\u2019s goal, curled and placed immaculately into the far corner with his left foot. Ngumoha and Gakpo combined to see up Salah, who took the shot first time and swept it beautifully past Leno. He didn\u2019t strike it was quite as cleanly as Ngumoha but both shots were right in the corner and gave Leno no chance.<\/p>\n Mo\u2019s left foot: Mohamed Salah watches as his shot beats Fulham’s goalkeeper Bernd Leno for their second goal. Photograph: Andy Buchanan\/AFP\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a013.15 EDT<\/p>\n 40 min Szoboszlai wins the ball high up the field and finds Wirtz, who pings a shot over the bar from 20 yards.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n It\u2019s Rio Ngumoha\u2019s first goal at Anfield, and nobody at the ground tonight will forget it in a hurry. Anthony Taylor played a good advantage, allowing Wirtz to move forward and find Ngumoha on the left side of the area. He twisted Castagne one way and then the other before moving back onto his right foot and curling a perfectly placed shot into the far corner. He set it outside the far post with just enough curler to bring it back into ithe net. That\u2019s such an accomplished goal, the kind a 17-year-old should be incapable of scoring.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a013.09 EDT<\/p>\n GOAL! Liverpool 1-0 Fulham (Nguomha 36)<\/p>\n Rio Nguomha, 17 years old, gives Liverpool<\/a> the lead with a beauty!<\/p>\n Curler: Rio Ngumoha of Liverpool scores his team’s first goal past Bernd Leno. Photograph: Liverpool FC\/Getty ImagesRio Ngumoha of Liverpool scores his team\u2019s first goal while under pressure from Timothy Castagne and Harry Wilson of Fulham. Photograph: Carl Recine\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a013.13 EDT<\/p>\n 35 min After another smooth Fulham<\/a> attack, Robinson badly overhits his cross. But this is a good spell for Fulham, easily their best of the match.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 33 min Harry Wilson comes close against his old club with a trademark curler from the edge of thea rea that dips onto the roof of the net. Mamardashvili probably had it covered, but I wouldn\u2019t put the farm on it.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 32 min Fulham are growing into this game. Bobb\u2019s snapshot from 12 yards is pushed away by Mamardashvili, diving to his left. A fairly comfortable save.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 29 min King plays a fine reverse pass to the underlapping Castagne, who moves into the area and arrows a cutback towards the unmarked Iwobi 15 yards out He can\u2019t control the ball and the attacks peters out. Moments later Iwobi shoots straight at Mamardashvili from distance.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 23 min Ngumoha almost beats Castagne in the area with an extravagant piece of skill. Castagne read it well and got between his man and the ball.<\/p>\n Liverpool have been very good so far.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 22 min Salah has a close-range shot well blocked, I think by Berge. He tried to delay the shot to buy a yard, but it was such a crowded penalty area and there was just no room to get a shot away.<\/p>\n Liverpool’s Hugo Ekitike talks to Ryan Gravenberch and Alexander Isak on the bench. Photograph: David Klein\/ReutersShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a012.53 EDT<\/p>\n 20 min Wirtz, Ngumoha and Robertson combine nicely to find Gakpo, whose low drive from 20 yards goes not far wide. Leno probably had it covered.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 19 min Fulham\u2019s first corner is punched away with authority by Mamardashvili.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 17 min Ngumoha goes down in the area after a slightly clumsy challenge from Bobb. Anthony Taylor waves it away.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 16 min It\u2019s still all Liverpool<\/a>. They\u2019re playing with good rhythm and plenty of intensity. So far Fulham haven\u2019t had a chance to get on the ball.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 14 min: Good save! Frimpong fires the ball into Salah, who hits a sharp right-foot shot that is well stopped at the near post by the plunging Leno.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 11 min Robertson runs onto a Frimpong cutback, only to hit a tame shot from the edge of the area that is easily blocked.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 9 min Ngumoha gets away from Castagne in the area but chips his cross too close to Leno.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 9 min The lively Frimpong wins another corner down the right. Salah\u2019s inswinger is nutted away by Bassey.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 6 min Nothing comes of the corner, with Konate penalised for wrestling with Berge.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 5 min Salah finds the underlapping Frimpong, who wins the first corner of the game. Liverpool<\/a> have started pr-etty well.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a012.35 EDT<\/p>\n 3 min Both teams have started in a 4-2-3-1 formation as expected.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 1 min Fulham kick off from left to right as we watch. The home fans launch straight into a song about Andy Robertson, who announced this week that he will leave the club this summer. \u00a38m he cost.<\/p>\n Andy Robertson on the move\u2026 Photograph: Andy Buchanan\/AFP\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a012.39 EDT<\/p>\n A peedie reminder of the teams<\/p>\n Liverpool (4-2-3-1) Mamardashvili; Frimpong, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Szoboszlai, Jones; Salah, Wirtz, Ngumoha; Gakpo<\/p>\n Subs: Woodman, Gomez, Kirkez, Isak, Mac Allister, Chiesa, Ekitike, Gravenberch, Nyoni.<\/p>\n Fulham (4-2-3-1) Leno; Castagne, Andersen, Bassey, Robinson; Berge, Iwobi; Wilson, King, Bobb; Muniz.<\/p>\n Subs: Lecomte, Diop, Cuenca, Sessegnon, Lukic, Cairney, Smith Rowe, Chukwueze, Raul Jimenez.<\/p>\n Referee Anthony Taylor.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Marco Silva talks to Sky Sports<\/p>\n double quotation markI like to be ambitious but realistic \u2013 Liverpool\u2019s home season has not been that different from last season. We are prepared for a tough game but we are capable of playing good football and let\u2019s hope we can reach our level again at Anfield.<\/p>\n It\u2019s another big game for us. We want to restart in the best way possible [after the international break].<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Arne Slot\u2019s pre-match thoughts<\/p>\n double quotation mark[On making five changes] That made complete sense after the week we\u2019ve had. It\u2019s been very demanding physically and mentally. I tried to use yesterday\u2019s training session to see who had recovered fully.<\/p>\n Some of them have to play again because I\u2019m out of options in those positions. We have a lot of ingredients for a good game.<\/p>\n If you play for Liverpool, every game is a must-win, and this one as well.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Premier League results<\/p>\n And this is what it means for the Premier League<\/a> table. There\u2019s a Spandex mini-league taking place below the top four.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a012.13 EDT<\/p>\n The Guardian has kicked off a new chapter in puzzles with the launch of its first daily football game<\/a>, On the ball. It is now live in the app for both iOS and Android \u2026 so what are you waiting for?<\/p>\n On the ball on the Guardian app. Photograph: The GuardianShare<\/a>Team news: Salah and Robertson start, Fulham unchanged<\/p>\n Mo Salah returns to the Liverpool<\/a> team after being manacled to the bench in Paris. Andy Robertson also starts, as do Curtis Jones, Cody Gakpo and 17-year-old Rio Ngumoha. Hugo Ekitike, Milos Kerkez, Joe Gomez, Alexis Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch all drop to the bench.<\/p>\n Fulham haven\u2019t played since a 3-1 win over Burnley on 21 March. Marco Silva has named an unchanged side, which means an exciting front four of Harry Wilson, Josh King, Oscar Bobb and Rodrigo Muniz.<\/p>\n Liverpool (4-2-3-1) Mamardashvili; Frimpong, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Szoboszlai, Jones; Salah, Wirtz, Ngumoha; Gakpo<\/p>\n Subs: Woodman, Gomez, Kirkez, Isak, Mac Allister, Chiesa, Ekitike, Gravenberch, Nyoni.<\/p>\n Fulham (4-2-3-1) Leno; Castagne, Andersen, Bassey, Robinson; Berge, Iwobi; Wilson, King, Bobb; Muniz.<\/p>\n Subs: Lecomte, Diop, Cuenca, Sessegnon, Lukic, Cairney, Smith Rowe, Chukwueze, Raul Jimenez.<\/p>\n Referee Anthony Taylor.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a012.14 EDT<\/p>\n Arne Slot has said last season\u2019s title triumph \u201cpostponed\u201d the end of an era at Liverpool but that the club were under no illusions a rebuild was required when appointing him as J\u00fcrgen Klopp\u2019s successor.<\/p>\n Two more links to the Klopp era will be removed this summer when Andy Robertson and Mohamed Salah leave on free transfers. Virgil van Dijk, Alisson and Joe Gomez, the remaining players from the squad that delivered Premier League<\/a> and Champions League success to Anfield under Klopp, will then enter the final years of their contracts.<\/p>\n Slot is under intense pressure after a dismal season that has brought 16 defeats, a figure he knows is unacceptable. The head coach, however, insists he and the club hierarchy, including the sporting director, Richard Hughes, and the owner, Fenway Sports Group<\/a>, remain aligned on the reasons for the problems, including an inevitable transition period after Klopp. The turmoil that accompanies transition, Slot believes, was delayed by last season\u2019s Premier League title.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Preamble<\/p>\n Pop quiz, hotshot. Which of Liverpool\u2019s next two games is more important: Fulham (H) or Paris Saint-Germain (H). It\u2019s the Fulham game we\u2019re covering today, so let\u2019s try to hype that within an inch of its life make the case for that being the big one. It\u2019s pretty simple: Liverpool<\/a> have a 5-10 per cent of overcoming a 2-0 deficit against one of the greatest club sides in modern history, so they should prioritise qualifying for next year\u2019s Ch\u00a3mpion$ League. Next stop, rocket science.<\/p>\n Liverpool have a tough Premier League<\/a> run-in, including matches away to Everton, Man Utd and Aston Villa, and their home form will probably determine whether they finish in the top five. Even allowing for some good recent home form \u2013 Liverpool have scored 24 goals in the last seven games at Anfield \u2013 this is unlikely to be an easy night. Fulham can give any Premier League team a game, as they showed that last season when they took four points off a Liverpool side that romped to the title.<\/p>\n It\u2019s too easy, when spring comes around, that Fulham<\/a> are safely in mid-table and have nothing much to play for. Wrong! They started the day in ninth and have every chance of qualifying for Europe for the first time since 2011-12. They could even reach the Champions League: if they win today, they will be only two points behind Liverpool.<\/p>\n Kick off 5.30pm BST<\/p>\n![\"Andy](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1775927769_73_Andy_Hunter.png\")
Andy Hunter<\/p>\n