Liverpool 1-0 West Ham: Sadio Mane survives tight VAR call for first-half winner as Reds left to hold on

Match report and free highlights as Sadio Mane survives a tight VAR call to give Liverpool a 1-0 win over West Ham, who twice come close to levelling through Pablo Fornals and Manuel Lanzini; Reds raise pressure on leaders Man City ahead of Manchester derby, live on Sky Sports on Sunday

Ron Walker

Digital Football Journalist @Ronnabe

Sunday 6 March 2022 11:02, UK

Sadio Mane's first-half goal proved enough for Liverpool as they stumbled to a 1-0 win over West Ham to move them three points off leaders Manchester City.

The Reds were far from their free-flowing best and with better composure, the Champions League-chasing Hammers could have left Anfield with a deserved point, but gilt-edged chances passed up in both halves allowed the hosts to claim a 12th successive victory. "When you're in contention to win the league, you will take three points any way they come," was Graeme Souness' full-time assessment.

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Mane's strike was confirmed by VAR as he latched onto Trent Alexander-Arnold's cross-cum-shot to fire beyond Lukasz Fabianski from six yards, having timed his run to perfection to stay the right side of defender Craig Dawson.

Liverpool could have doubled their lead before the break when Luis Diaz's effort was cleared off the line by Aaron Cresswell, but so could West Ham have claimed an equaliser when Alexander-Arnold was needed to hook Pablo Fornals' effort away after the Spaniard had lobbed Alisson.

As Diaz twice went close to a Liverpool second after half-time, Manuel Lanzini passed up the chance of the game to level, controlling Tomas Soucek's right-wing cross brilliantly before blazing over from six yards with the goal gaping ahead of him.

The manner of the performance will not have pleased Jurgen Klopp but the three points will be all-important ahead of the Manchester derby on Sunday, while West Ham - still two points behind fourth-placed Manchester United, having played a game more - saw their top-four hopes fade further with a third winless game from four.

'Special win' keeps unconvincing Liverpool in touch with leaders

Jurgen Klopp admitted Liverpool had not produced a vintage performance to beat their impressive visitors, but said grinding out victory - their fourth 1-0 triumph of the season - was a "special result" given its importance. Alexander-Arnold added the game had produced the kind of result which "really mattered" in the Reds' pursuit of the Premier League title.

It was certainly as hard-fought as any of the 11 consecutive wins which had preceded it. Even at the break, by which point Mane had fired Liverpool ahead, Klopp knew his side were in a game - under his stewardship, no other opposition had attempted more first-half shots against Liverpool than this West Ham side.

Alisson was perhaps lucky that his palmed save on Michail Antonio's powerful near-post drive had enough on it to just land the right side of his own crossbar, before he was left grateful for Alexander-Arnold's assistance to deny Fornals on the line when the Spanish midfielder beat the offside trap and was played in behind.

After the interval, a pair of last-ditch challenges on Jarrod Bowen and Antonio - the former even forced off injured by the force of Andy Robertson's intervention - stopped the Hammers from finding a way back into the contest, and Lanzini then let Liverpool off the hook himself with a dreadful miss for which he had little excuse.

Liverpool did have chances to kill the game as a contest too, however. Soon after Mane's opener, Diaz was inches from doubling their advantage with Cresswell hooking his goalbound effort off the line, before the Colombian curled two efforts just wide after the break.

Klopp admitted Liverpool's defending had lacked quality, with West Ham afforded more chances than most of their opponents in recent games, but said his side's "passion" had made up for any deficiencies elsewhere.

"It was a really tricky fixture in the first place, we know about all the different things West Ham are good at," he told Sky Sports. "I told the boys after the game, if we are not well organised, we have to defend with passion.

"You cannot win the amount of games we have won in the last few weeks without stress and luck from time to time. I know we can do much better, but you have to get it over the line and I'm very happy about that. It's a very special win."

Similarly, the three points were all that mattered come full-time for Alexander-Arnold, who set a personal record during the game with a 16th assist of the season, the best tally of his career to date.

He told Sky Sports: "You look at the Burnley game, we went there and got a 1-0 win too. These are the ones that really matter - it's nice with a 4-0, 5-0 win, but it's three points. It's about getting the job done."

Moyes: You have to take risks to get a result at Anfield

After the game, Robertson praised West Ham's bravery to "leave four players forward" when Liverpool had the ball and Moyes said it was a necessity to have any hope of getting a result at Anfield.

He told Sky Sports: "We've come here recently and come close a couple of times, we try to make it as difficult as we can, but they've got so many parts of the pitch they can score goals from. Sometimes you have to give a few up, and sometimes you have to take a little bit of risk.

"We want to be attack-minded, I don't want to come away and just sit in. There were times we had to suffer without the ball, there was a period in the first half after they scored where I felt it could go the wrong way.

"We tried to stay in the game, I wanted us to get a clean sheet, because with that I thought we could win the game. And had we got one, we could've won - I certainly thought we had the chances."

"They had a couple of chances we gave them - but we grew into the game. We didn't finish Pablo's chance, and in the second half late on, I thought if any team was going to get a goal it'd probably be us."

Souness: 'Of course' Liverpool quadruple hopes are on

After the previous weekend's Carabao Cup triumph over Chelsea, Klopp played down any hope of Liverpool winning four trophies this season - with the FA Cup, Champions League and Premier League all still possibilities - but Souness, who managed the club from 1991 to 1994, said his former club had a chance of making history.

Sky Sports' Graeme Souness: "Of course it's on, but you just never know if there'll be a banana skin somewhere, where you least expect it. Look how Forest have been in the FA Cup, is that one? Inter Milan are the current Italian champions. They'll feel inferior to no one and played really well in the first game.

"There's banana skins, but there's a banana skin for Manchester City and everyone else chasing honours too."

What's next?

Liverpool will take on Inter Milan in the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Tuesday, March 8 at 8pm before returning to Premier League action against Brighton on Saturday, March 12 at 12.30pm.

West Ham will travel to face Sevilla in the first leg of their Europa League last-16 tie on Thursday, March 10 at 5.45pm. The Hammers' next Premier League game will be against Aston Villa on Sunday, March 13 at 2pm.