Liverpool held to a 2-2 draw against West Ham

• Liverpool were held to a 2-2 draw against West Ham at the London Stadium this afternoon, dealing a severe blow to their the title chances.

Liverpool were held to a 2-2 draw against West Ham at the London Stadium this afternoon, dealing a severe blow to their the title chances.

Just prior to halftime, Jarrod Bowen gave the Hammers the lead. However, the Reds quickly equalized with Andrew Robertson and Alphonse Areola’s own goal early in the second half.

Even yet, David Moyes’s team managed to hold onto the match and delivered a significant blow to the Reds’ title challenge when Michail Antonio scored late in the day.

Liverpool’s dominant start

Van Dijk battles the ball with Michail Antonio. Photo/ Goal

Liverpool dominated possession and territory early on in the game, setting the tone and controlling the tempo, while West Ham looked content to sit back and wait for an opportunity to counterattack.

Ten minutes in, the Reds had their first genuine chance of the game when a left-wing cross was headed toward goal but Cody Gakpo mishandled it. Harvey Elliot then well controlled the rebound and struck a hard effort at goal, only for it to fall wide of the sidenetting.

Five minutes later, Bowen’s intercept of a sloppy ball from Elliot on the halfway line revealed West Ham’s game plan. The Hammers’ striker pushed his way into a shooting position and hit a strong low shot that was directed toward goal, but Alisson easily stopped it.

The visitors had 72% of the possession at halftime and had scored their first set-piece of the game from 25 yards out. Trent Alexander-Arnold took the free kick and tried to score again, but this time he couldn’t match his recent strike against Fulham, sending the ball over the bar and into the seats.

When the half-hour mark drew near, Liverpool felt they should have been awarded a penalty after Luis Diaz broke through the Hammers’ defense, only to see Kurt Zouma block his shot and Areola bring Gakpo down in the area. After more than two minutes of VAR review for what appeared to be a fairly simple ruling, Anthony Taylor’s first penalty point was reversed, with Diaz declared to have been offside.

Liverpool players celebrate. Photo/ Sky Sports

For the most part of the half, West Ham was disciplined out of possession as Liverpool continued to struggle with finishing, managing just two of their eleven attempts on goal at that point.

The Reds were then forced to pay for their carelessness just before the half, as Bowen forced an excellent stop from Alisson after they lost control in their defensive third. But Bowen’s header from the center of the box on Mohammed Kudus’s subsequent corner hit the back of the net, giving the England international his 20th goal of the year—16 of which have come in the Premier League.

In the second half, Liverpool got the ideal start when Diaz, who was perhaps their finest player in the first forty-five minutes, found Robertson in the opposition box. Areola missed his opportunity to make a stop as the left-back fired a shot that deflected off the post and into the net.

The Reds were creating opportunities quite effortlessly and had a few opportunities to grab the lead before the hour had passed. It appeared that the team talk at halftime had a profound effect on them.

West Ham attempted to surge forward in an attempt to pull even, but Klopp’s team was finding gaps to close the score. By the 75th minute of the game, the visitors had registered 23 shots on goal, but they were still only up by one.

After scoring the first goal, Bowen was largely unnoticed, but he later proved to be the deciding factor for the Hammers once more. Bowen found Antonio with a pinpoint short cross that went between two Liverpool defenders, and the striker expertly took advantage of the opportunity to tie the score and set up an exciting finale.

In the midst of stoppage time, West Ham managed to secure a crucial point, while Liverpool has only won once in their previous five league games and will require extreme good fortune to surpass Arsenal and Manchester City for the title.