Liverpool beat Villa 2-1, level on points with City in EPL

Liverpool has ensured the Premier League’s thrilling title race will stretch into the final week of the season.
A come-from-behind 2-1 win at Aston Villa, sealed a 65th-minute header Sadio Mane, showed Liverpool’s heart for the fight and moved Jürgen Klopp’s team level on points with Manchester City on Tuesday.
“It’s about digging in, keeping going and finding a way to win,” Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson said.
City still leads thanks to its superior goal difference of 3 to Liverpool. The defending champions play their game in hand against Wolverhampton on Wednesday, after which the two title rivals will have only two more league games to play.
The earliest City could now clinch the league is on Tuesday, when Liverpool plays its next league game — at Southampton. Before that, City plays twice, against Wolves then West Ham on Sunday.
Liverpool’s Sadio Mane, left, celebrates with his teammates after scoring against Aston Villa during the English Premier League soccer match between Aston Villa and Liverpool at Villa Park in Birmingham, England, Tuesday, May 10, 2022. (AP Photo/Rui Vieira)
“We cannot do more than win,” Klopp said. “A lot of people thought this could be a banana skin, that it could be a struggle for us, and how the boys sorted that was absolutely outstanding.”
The Reds, who drew 1-1 with Tottenham on Saturday, avoided having their title bid further derailed a Villa team managed one of their greatest players.
Steven Gerrard, a boyhood Liverpool fan and former star midfielder, insed his focus was purely on winning the game for Villa and saw midfielder Douglas Luiz — who was once on Man City’s books — give his team the lead in the third minute. The Brazilian forced the ball in from close range after his initial header was only parried out Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson Becker.
Villa held the lead for less than three minutes, with Joel Matip equalizing converting into an unguarded empty net after fellow center back Virgil van Dijk had a shot saved goalkeeper Emi Martinez.
Liverpool lost Fabinho in the 30th minute to a hamstring injury that could potentially rule the holding midfielder out of the FA Cup final against Chelsea on Saturday.
Liverpool’s manager Jurgen Klopp applauds after the English Premier League soccer match between Aston Villa and Liverpool at Villa Park in Birmingham, England, Tuesday, May 10, 2022. Liverpool won the game 2-1. (AP Photo/Rui Vieira)
The injury might actually have helped Liverpool. Fabinho had been struggling up to that point — he was lucky to avoid getting a yellow card for repeated fouls — and his replacement, Henderson, used his experience to calm the game down.
Liverpool had regained control the time Mane twed his neck to meet a cross from the left from Luis Diaz with a header into the bottom corner.
Now playing more as a central striker following Diaz’s arrival, Mane has become a pivotal player in recent months for Klopp, who gave the Senegal international a big hug after the fulltime whle that came as Liverpool’s away contingent sang the club’s anthem, You’ll Never Walk Alone.
“He’s a machine. A massive player,” Klopp said of Mane. “When everyone has yards in their legs, you can’t see it with him.”

Ahead of the FA Cup final at Wembley Stadium, Klopp chose to leave out left back Andrew Robertson from the squad entirely and begin with Mohamed Salah and Thiago Alcantara on the bench.
Liverpool finishes the league campaign with games against Southampton and Wolverhampton next week.
As for City, Pep Guardiola’s team might need to claim seven points from its remaining three games to win a sixth title in 11 years. The last match is against Villa on the final day of the season, so Gerrard can still have a massive say in the title race — but now helping his old club.
“In terms of commitment, heart and application, the lads gave me all I could ask for,” Gerrard said.
“Against one of the top sides in the league, we’ve been done in moments.”