Tottenham Hotspur took on Liverpool on Sunday evening in what was to prove a Christmas Classic. In a game which had an avalanche of chances, the first one came about for Liverpool inside the 1st minute, when Trent Alexander-Arnold pin pointed a ball right onto the top of Andy Robertson’s head but he could only divert the ball wide of Hugo Lloris’s post. This was swiftly followed by a sustained period of Liverpool possession after which, the ball ended up at James Milner’s feet for him to have a shot, but Lloris made a comfortable save down to his right hand side.
Then came Spurs’ first chance in the 4th minute of the game when Eric Dier found Ryan Sessegnon marauding down the wing with Harry Kane racing into the middle, but unfortunately from Spurs’ point of view, the direction on the pass just wasn’t there, and Trent Alexander-Arnold was on hand to defuse the danger.
In the 10th minute, Alexander-Arnold brought a smart save out of Lloris to keep Antonio Conte’s side on level terms. The next chance came for Spurs came when Emerson Royal went down the Liverpool right hand side, his cross found Harry Kane but he was crowded out, and Ibrahima Konaté was able to clear for The Reds.
Just over a minute later however, the deadlock was to be broken when Spurs’ Tanguy Ndombele found Kane and he finished expertly into the bottom left hand corner of Alisson Becker’s net.
In the 16th minute, Spurs had a glorious opportunity, when Kane found his way past Liverpool youngster Tyler Morton with Heung-Min Son racing through on goal, Kane found Son, but fortunately for Liverpool he could only blaze wide. Then Alexander-Arnold found Sadio Mane, but Davinson Sanchez was there to make a crucial tackle to keep the score at 1-0.
A moment of real controversy was to occur in the 19th minute, when Kane lunged in recklessly on Andy Robertson, but somehow the England forward only received a yellow card for what was a shocking challenge.
In the 23rd minute of the game, on his first League start, Morton received a yellow card as he found the going tough early doors.
Naby Keita was next to test Lloris, as he forced the Frenchman into a fine save as Liverpool continued to be frustrated by a determined Spurs side.
Just before the half hour mark, Harry winks found Son who in turn found Dele Alli who looked certain to score, but somehow, Alisson pulled off a miraculous save to keep Liverpool in the game.
Alli, Kane and Son all combined to create yet another chance for a wasteful Spurs side, as Alisson dived on the ball to keep Liverpool clinging on in what was a pulsating first half.
Spurs were made to pay for their hatful of missed chances ten minutes before the break as Robertson picked out the red hot Diogo Jota who headed into the Spurs net to equalise for The Reds.
Another controversial moment followed as Mane found Jota who was through on goal, Emerson Royal barged him in the back but somehow referee Paul Tierney saw nothing wrong with the challenge, much to Jurgen Klopp’s dismay and frustration as he ended up getting booked.
In the second-half, Spurs created another guilt edged opportunity when Alli combined with Kane, but Alisson came to Liverpool’s rescue again as he clawed the ball away from the England captain.
The chances kept flowing and in the 56th minute from a Spurs corner, Davies flicked the ball on to Kane but he could not convert from close range.
Then surprisingly there was a little bit of a lull in the game, but nevertheless it burst into life again with another moment of controversy as Dele Alli went down in the penalty area under Alexander-Arnold’s challenge, thankfully no penalty was given.
Half way through the second half and Liverpool struck again as the ball found its way to Alexander-Arnold who picked out Robertson to head the ball home and give Liverpool the advantage.
Unfortunately Liverpool would not be able to hang on as Winks threaded a lovely ball through behind The Reds’ defence. It was one that Alisson should have dealt with easily but he somehow managed to miss it, giving Son the chance to tap into an empty net.
There was yet more drama when Robertson lunged in on Emerson Royal. He was initially booked but after a VAR check, that decision was overturned and the Scotland captain was sent ogg.
Nevertheless, despite a few nervy moments with ten men, The coves-effected Reds were able to take a point back to Merseyside.
