Liverpool's defensive lapses cause them to have to settle for another draw in the Premier League this afternoon against Brighton. This time they blew a late lead with Leandro Trossard completing his hat trick in the 83rd minute to make the score 3-3. It is Liverpool's 4th draw in the 2022/23 Premier League season.
Liverpool spotted Brighton a 2 goal lead within the first 20 minutes. Leandro Trossard scored twice for the Seagulls in that period of time. Brighton played well for most of the first half and set the tone for the game early. In our preview, we said that Brighton would be trouble for Liverpool and they certainly were.
Liverpool did manage to rally from the early 2 goal deficit to take the lead on Brighton 3-2 in the 63rd minute. Roberto Firmino led the charge back, scoring 2 goals for his 4th and 5th tallies of the season for the Reds. Liverpool took the lead through a Brighton own goal with a little less than half an hour to play.
The Reds couldn't put the Seagulls away and in the 83 minute, Trossard made them pay again. The Belgian striker, who was clearly the Man of the Match, smashed home his third goal which caused Liverpool to drop a crucial 2 points.
First Half
Liverpool started slowly and let themselves get behind early to Brighton. Leandro Trossard scored for the Seagulls just 4 minutes into the game. He found himself on the end of a Danny Welbeck feed that he slotted home to the right corner past Alisson.
The Reds' slow start would allow Trossard to bite them again in the 18th minute. This time the Belgian received a slick touch pass from Solly March that left him all alone in the box. Brighton found themselves up 2-0 in less than 20 minutes at Anfield.
Liverpool were the architects of their own misery with Trent Alexander-Arnold being largely responsible for both Brighton goals. His two poor clearances ended up in the back of his own net.
Liverpool finally started coming into the game around the half-hour mark. While it is unacceptable for a team of Liverpool's size to start so poorly, they tried to make up for it. Alexander-Arnold's services tried to atone for his defensive lapses. And in the 33rd minute, they finally broke through.
Roberto Firmino got the Reds on the board in the 33rd minute. His tally brought Liverpool within one goal and was deserved as the Reds turned the tide of play against Brighton. The goal was initially ruled offside by the linesman but the goal was given after a VAR check.
Firmino's 4th goal of the year would get Liverpool closer but, yet again they would trail going into the half. Their defensive problems and Brighton's quick start put the Reds in a hole they would have to find a way out of.
Second Half
Klopp made the decision to bring Luis Diaz on at halftime. And that decision changed the course of the match, for a time. Diaz was once again a game-changer as the Reds looked much more lively to start the second half.
It didn't take long for Diaz to get involved. He sent the ball across to Firmino and the Brazillian finished for the 2nd Liverpool goal in the 54th minute. Firmino was certainly the best man on the pitch for Liverpool this afternoon.
The momentum firmly swung Liverpool's way in the second half, for a while. It would only be a matter of time before the Reds would go ahead. Only 9 minutes after Firmino's goal, a Trent Alexander-Arnold corner would go in off of Brighton's Adam Webster to give Liverpool the lead.
Up 3-2 for all of 20 minutes, it felt that the Reds might get out of this match with all 3 points. That was until the Liverpool backline let the team down again. This time it was Virgil van Dijk whiffing on a clearance of the Mitoma cross that Trossard planted for the tying goal.
Overall the result felt familiar for this year's Liverpool squad. They were outworked by Brighton for large pieces of this game. Their horrible defending was exploited 3 times and they looked much like the side that they were before the pause in the Premier League schedule.
Goals
Liverpool - Firmino 33', Frimino 54', Webster (OG) 63'
Brighton - Trossard 4', 18', 83'
Substitutes
Liverpool- Diaz for Carvalho at 45', Milner for Tsimikas at 59', Elliott for Henderson at 59', Jota for Firmino at 75', Thiago for Nunez at 89'
Brighton- Mitoma for Gross at 65', Lallana for Estupinan at 76', Lamptey for Trossard at 87'
Cards
Liverpool - Yellow - Alexander-Arnold 86'
Brighton - Yellow - Estupinan, 29'
LFC Globe Verdict
The back line is a mess. This game could have been much worse for Liverpool as Brighton had at least 6 quality chances at goal. The Reds need to tighten up on the defensive end if they want to find themselves back in the hunt for European places.
