Liverpool responded to Manchester City’s dramatic late win by beating Chelsea to return to the top of the Premier League table through Curtis Jones’ winner.

Mohamed Salah opened the scoring against his former club, blasting home from the penalty spot after Levi Colwill fouled Curtis Jones. They thought they had a second shortly after the half-hour mark, but Salah had strayed just offside before rolling the ball across for Cody Gakpo to tap home.

Referee John Brooks pointed to the spot for a second time in first-half stoppage time, with Jones the player felled once more. The second penalty award was overruled, though, with Robert Sanchez found to have made contact with the ball before colliding with the Liverpool man.

That meant Chelsea went in just one goal behind at half-time, and were level within five minutes as Nicolas Jackson stayed onside to slot home – with the goal confirmed after a lengthy VAR check. Jones restored his team’s lead just moments later, though, sending the Reds top after a seventh win from eight matches in the league.

Both teams were forced into changes before the match, with Liverpool’s goalkeeper situation the most notable. Both teams also welcomed some first teamers back late from South American World Cup qualifiers, with Luis Diaz and Enzo Fernandez starting on the bench for their respective clubs.

There was an early scare for Chelsea as Diogo Jota threatened to break free for Liverpool, forcing Tosin into an early yellow card for bringing down the Portuguese forward. Liverpool’s half-time lead reflected a period in which they had the bulk of the chances, but the contest came even more to life with Jackson’s leveller.

Had Chelsea kept themselves level longer, it could have got even more interesting, but Jones’ goal came at a perfect time for the hosts and they successfully kept their opponents at arm’s length.(The Mirror: Text, Excluding Headline)