With 98 minutes played at the City Ground it seemed Liverpool were set to drop two crucial points in the Premier League title race but Darwin Nunez struck a last-gasp winner to secure a 1-0 win at Nottingham Forest on Saturday.
It was the 18th time Liverpool had scored a winner beyond 90 minutes in the Premier League since Jurgen Klopp took charge, but few felt more important as the Reds maintained the relentless pressure at the top of the table.
Klopp’s side’s eighth win in nine league games left them on 63 points from 27 games, four points ahead of champions Manchester City, who host Manchester United on Sunday, and five ahead of Arsenal who play Sheffield United on Monday.
Fifth-placed Tottenham Hotspur came from behind to beat Crystal Palace 3-1 and keep the pressure on fourth-placed Aston Villa, who held off a spirited second-half comeback from Luton Town in Saturday’s late game to win 3-2.
Timo Werner struck the equaliser, his first goal for Tottenham, with Cristian Romero and Son Heung-min wrapping up the points for Ange Postecoglou’s side.
Everton’s relief at having four points handed back to them in midweek after they appealed against a 10-point sanction for breaking Premier League financial rules was soured as they went down 3-1 at home to West Ham United.
Chelsea fought back to earn a point against Brentford in a 2-2 draw after defender Axel Disasi headed an 83rd-minute equaliser in the West London derby.
Fulham and Newcastle United had 3-0 home wins against Brighton and Hove Albion and Wolverhampton Wanderers respectively.
Nunez, who started on the bench after recovering from a thigh injury, kept Liverpool’s title destiny firmly in their own hands as he glanced in Alexis Mac Allister’s cross to spark wild scenes on the away bench and away end.
Relegation-threatened Forest had worked tirelessly to keep Liverpool at bay and were furious when the final whistle sounded, with coach Steven Reid shown a red card.
Forest remained in 17th place and their despair was in stark contrast to Liverpool’s joy.
“Pretty special afternoon. It’s been a tricky schedule,” Klopp, whose injury-hit side won the League Cup final last weekend and who face Manchester City next week, said.
“This game didn’t go easy for us. We didn’t have a great rhythm and the boys felt the intensity for the first time. It’s pretty special what the boys did. To get to that points tally was a big fight. It never was easy.”
Luton were unable to make the most of Forest’s slip-up despite coming back from two goals down against Aston Villa, with substitute Lucas Digne grabbing an 88th-minute winner for a 3-2 win that keeps his fourth-placed side in the hunt for Champions League football next season.
Eberechi Eze marked his return from injury for Crystal Palace with a superb free kick to give his side the lead at Tottenham on the hour mark.
But Werner, on loan from RB Leipzig, tucked in Brennan Johnstone’s pass in the 77th minute before Cristian Romero and Son Heung-min scored to hand Tottenham an important win.
They have 50 points from 26 games, with Villa able to reach 55 from 27 if they beat Luton Town.
Striker Beto gave Everton the lead against West Ham but Kurt Zouma levelled and stoppage time goals by Tomas Soucek and Edson Alvarez lifted West Ham to seventh place and extended Everton’s winless run to 10 league games.
Chelsea remain the bottom half of the table after another disappointing result a week after losing the League Cup final.
The Blues were leading through Nicolas Jackson’s 35th-minute header but were pegged back by Mads Roerslev’s close-range strike in the 50th.
When Yoane Wissa put Brentford ahead with a spectacular overhead kick in the 69th, the away fans began singing the name of former manager Jose Mourinho as well as calling for Pochettino to go.
“I’ve been told. I didn’t hear, to be honest. It’s difficult for me to understand,” the Argentine coach said.
“But it’s normal. We were losing the game 2-1 and they expressed their frustration. I am one of the ones responsible. I’m the coach.”
Chelsea rescued a point on Pochettino’s 52nd birthday when Axel Disasi headed home Cole Palmer’s cross.
Brentford moved above Everton into 15th place with 26 points, six clear of the drop zone.
In the late game, Ollie Watkins scored two first-half goals and Lucas Digne grabbed an 89th-minute winner for Aston Villa in its 3-2 victory over Luton in the English Premier League, strengthening the team’s place in the Champions League qualification spots.
Digne came off the bench to head home the clinching goal at Kenilworth Road, just when Luton looked like claiming a point from 2-0 down.
Watkins moved onto 16 league goals — behind only Manchester City’s Erling Haaland (17) — with clinical finishes in the 24th and 38th minutes.
Luton, third from last and four points adrift of safety, responded with a strong second-half display and scored through Tahith Chong and Carlton Morris.
Digne and Moussa Diaby were among four substitutes to enter in the 79th minute in a bold move by Villa manager Unai Emery. It paid off as Diaby provided the cross for Digne’s goal.
Reuters/AP
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