Luis Diaz salvages a point for Liverpool against Crystal Palace following Darwin Nunez's dismissal.

Youssef Shnino
15 Aug, 2022

 Luis Diaz salvages a point for Liverpool against Crystal Palace following Darwin Nunez's dismissal.


Liverpool's Anfield Following a red card for summer acquisition Darwin Nunez, Liverpool's faltering start to the Premier League season continued as they were held to a 1-1 draw by Crystal Palace.

The Reds dropped two points as they battled out a competitive draw against newly promoted Fulham on the first day of the season, closing the gap on likely championship rivals Manchester City.

With only two games played, they have already fallen four points behind Pep Guardiola's champions after another error on their return to Anfield.

Of course, the situation might have been worse for the hosts who, after dominating the first half, went down to a cool Wilfried Zaha breakaway goal.

Nunez's careless headbutt on Joachim Andersen, which rightfully resulted in him being given an early bath, made their work much more difficult.

But in the second half, a superb Luis Diaz solo strike saved a point for Jurgen Klopp's team, even though the manager will not be very pleased with the outcome.

No excuse for Nunez after headbutt madness

It's easy to call Nunez's headbutt a moment of lunacy, but it would ignore the fact that the Uruguayan only made contact with Andersen on the second try. Nunez lost his senses inexplicably as he lunged for his opponent twice in rapid succession with referee Paul Tierney nearby on his complete Premier League debut for his new team at Anfield.

Is the Premier League championship race already over?

To assume that anything has been settled only two games into a new Premier League season is simply absurd.

But that doesn't mean Manchester City's four-point lead over their perennial championship rivals isn't a major advantage at any time of year. Because they seldom make mistakes, these two clubs have consistently accumulated 90+ points on route to sharing this piece of silverware in recent years.

As a result, whether two games in or not, Liverpool have already set themselves a mountain to climb in order to catch Pep Guardiola's players.

As it happened: Liverpool vs. Crystal Palace

FINAL: Liverpool 1-1 Crystal Palace It's all over at Anfield, as Liverpool has surrendered another two points in their bid for the Premier League title. How different things may have been if Darwin Nunez had not received an unnecessary red card.

90 minutes: Palace is still clinging on despite having a numerical edge.

89 minutes: Fabio Carvalho volleys past the post as Liverpool continue to press.

Palace should be back in front after 78 minutes, but Zaha can only hit the outside of the post as he dives for a lovely pass to the back stick. So unfortunate!

Chris Richards, Luka Milivojevic, and Will Huges have been brought on as substitutes for the visitors.

Meanwhile, Liverpool adds Fabio Carvalho in place of Harvey Elliott.

71 minutes: Salah's flick finds Alexander-dash Arnold's in behind, but the finish is typical of a full-back: high, wide, and into the Kop end.

63 minutes: Klopp reacts by looking to his bench, bringing on Jordan Henderson, Joe Gomez, and Kostas Tsimikas to replace James Milner, Nat Phillips, and Andy Robertson.

61 minutes: GOAL! Liverpool 1-1 Crystal Palace (Diaz) - Is the match on? Luis Diaz makes a daring run in from the left before slamming a stunning attempt beyond Guaita's desperate dive. Liverpool's 10 men are level! 

SENT OFF! 57MINUTES! Liverpool is now facing an uphill struggle. Darwin Nunez is given his marching orders after a headbutt on Joachim Andersen after the two exchange words. So stupid from the Uruguayan, who may have sacrificed his team a chance to recover. 

52 minutes: The Anfield crowd is already agitated as Liverpool struggles in the early parts of the second half. Palace is doing an excellent job.

46 minutes: The game resumes at Anfield, and Liverpool will need to find another gear if they are to turn things around.

HALF TIME: Liverpool 0-1 Crystal Palace (Zaha 32') - Wilfried Zaha's goal separates the teams at halftime; will Liverpool's championship challenge suffer another early setback? 

45+2mins: Elliott dinks one in behind for Nunez, and his scuffed finish loops over Guaita... but is deflected against the post! As Palace hold on to their advantage, Van Dijk totally skews his attempted follow-up.

39 minutes: Diaz gets in trouble for a petulant pull on Ayew's shirt after he's been evicted. Liverpool is now upset after dominating for large stretches of the first half but falling behind.

32 minutes: GOAL! Liverpool 0-1 Crystal Palace (32' Zaha) - Vieira's strategy is clearly working now! 

Zaha overcomes the Liverpool offside trap to latch on to Eze's pass in behind and coolly pokes the ball in from the left side, sending the away end into raptures. What a satisfying conclusion!

29 minutes: Alexander-fantastic Arnold's chip in behind allows Salah to head goalward, but his attempt is feeble and easily saved.

It's still all Liverpool, but Patrick Vieira would argue that his strategy is succeeding as long as the score keeps the same.

Salah races onto a low Alexander-Arnold cross and opens up his body... but it's not enough, as he sidefoots the ball past the wrong side of the post.

So far, Palace has done just enough to keep Liverpool at away.

17 minutes: The dangerous Zaha seeks to exploit space in behind Nat Phillips, but it's coolly handled by the Liverpool man, who steps over to snag the ball.

9 minutes: Liverpool are in command early on and go near when Harvey Elliott drops a shoulder and gets a shot away after latching onto a loose ball. He is, though, stopped by a superb block, and Palace holds on.

1 minute: Wilfried Zaha gets Crystal Palace started.

10 minutes before kickoff, the atmosphere at Anfield is heating up well. It says a lot about previous Premier League championship battles that Liverpool can't afford a second consecutive slip-up here if they want to push Manchester City.

30 minutes before kickoff: With both Roberto Firmino and Joel Matip out tonight due to fresh injuries, Liverpool currently has nine players on the sidelines.

Thiago Alcantara, Ibrahima Konate, Curtis Jones, Diogo Jota, Caoimhin Kelleher, Calvin Ramsay, and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain have also been ruled out.

40 minutes to kickoff: Darwin Nunez starts up front today after making an impact off the bench during a tough afternoon for Liverpool against Fulham.

Can the Uruguayan repeat his performance from last season with Benfica in this stadium?

With one hour to kickoff, here is Crystal Palace's starting lineup, which includes former Red Nathaniel Clyne.

With just one hour till kickoff, Nat Phillips makes a surprising start while Joe Gomez is only considered well enough to sit on the bench due to the injuries to Joel Matip and Ibou Konate.

1 hour 10 minutes before kickoff: Liverpool have won their past five Premier League meetings with Crystal Palace at Anfield, but it's worth remembering that today's visitors were once something of a bogey team for their hosts. Between 2015 and 2017, the Eagles won three games in a row at this stadium.

1 hour 30 minutes to kickoff Will the cover hero of Liverpool's matchday programme make the starting XI today? 

1 hour 45 minutes before kickoff: Merseyside has been graced with beautiful weather today, but the players will be relieved to see temperatures decrease to more acceptable levels as the match approaches. The benefits of playing on a Monday evening after a long weekend in the Premier League.

2 hours before kickoff: Hello and welcome to the match between Liverpool and Crystal Palace today. The Reds play their first game of the season at Anfield, looking for their first victory of 2022/23 after an exciting draw with Fulham on matchday one. 

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