London (AFP)

Liverpool are still moving!

Jostled by competition and in difficulty at both ends of the field recently, the Reds reacted by winning Thursday without dispute in Tottenham (3-1), for the 20th day of the Premier League.

Hounded by the Spurs at one point before the match, the reigning champion goes back, with 37 points, on the 4th step, qualifying for the Champions League, 4 lengths behind the leader Manchester City.

The Londoners are overtaken by West Ham and are no longer virtual Europeans (6th with 33 points) at the end of the day.

Even more than the accounting operation, it is the good performance, especially offensive, of the men of Jürgen Klopp which was a pleasure to see.

To try to stop the series of 7 consecutive defeats of Spurs against the Reds, José Mourinho had renewed the 3-4-3 which had done well for his team against Sheffield United (3-1).

A system abandoned at the break, when Liverpool led 1-0, but the 4-3-3 then proposed by Tottenham was not much stronger.

The Spurs had, in addition, lost their striker Harry Kane, hit in an ankle, at half-time.

Liverpool's success owes a lot to two new-found efficiency players: right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold and striker Sadio Mané, both scorers and assistants.

The Senegalese opened the scoring on a plateau to Roberto Firmino in added time of the first act, on a center that Hugo Lloris should perhaps have intercepted (0-1, 45 + 4).

Barely believable statistic: It was Liverpool's first league goal in 2021, with the Reds being the last Premier League side to score yet this year.

- Regeneration to be confirmed -

Mané also scored the third goal from close range, receiving a long elusive center from Alexander-Arnold who took back the London defense (1-3, 65th).

In the meantime, it was the latter who had found himself at the right time to resume a vicious strike low to the ground from Mané, pushed back by Lloris, to widen the gap to 2-0 (47th).

Danish Tottenham midfielder Pierre-Emile Hojberg gave Spurs hope with an unstoppable strike from 22 meters (1-2, 49th), but his team missed the boat early in the match with a goal denied to Son Heung-min for a minimal offside (4th) and a good opportunity for the South Korean stopped by Alisson (22nd).

Jürgen Klopp can generally be satisfied with the defensive performance of his team, especially since he had to face the package Fabinho in the axis.

He opted for a Joël Matip-Jordan Henderson hinge who is already the 11th different he has lined up at kickoff in twenty days, with seven different players.

And at half-time, he had to replace the Cameroonian, affected, to bring in Nathaniel Phillips, creating yet a new pair.

This return to form will need to be confirmed in upcoming matches where the Reds will face direct rivals: West Ham (5th) away on Sunday, leaders Manchester City at Anfield a week later and Leicester (3rd) on February 13, before continuing with the Champions League and Leipzig in the round of 16 first leg, in Germany, three days later.

© 2021 AFP