Fulham 3-2 Liverpool: Reds miss chance to extend lead at top of Premier League

Midfielder Alexis Mac Allister had fired the visitors into an early lead but they were stunned by first-half goals from Alex Iwobi, Rodrigo Muniz and Ryan Sessegnon.

Substitute Luis Díaz halved the deficit in the second-half but it wasn't enough, as Arne Slot tasted an away defeat in the English top-flight for the first time.

For Fulham, it's a result which moved them up to 8th in the Premier League table and within three points of the top five ahead of Sunday's Manchester derby.

The hosts made five changes to the side which lost to Arsenal in midweek, with Sessegnon among those to come in.

It was Fulham who came close to taking the lead just minutes into the contest. Ibrahima Konaté was caught out by Andreas Pereira inside his own area but his attempted pass to Rodrigo Muniz was disrupted by a coming together with Virgil van Dijk.

And they were punished for failing to capitalise soon after.

Driving from the halfway line, Mac Allister pushed off the challenge of Sander Berge before unleashing a fierce strike from distance which left Bernd Leno helpless to prevent the ball crashing into the back of the net.

The effort was met by gasps and applause from sections of the home crowd with chants of "we're going to win the league" echoing around from the away end.

The balance of the game was firmly in Liverpool's favour but they were pegged back just ten minutes after taking the lead.

Curtis Jones inadvertently directed Pereira's cross into the path of Sessegnon, whose first-time volley from close range beat Caoimhín Kelleher low to his left.

When Liverpool presented Fulham with another golden opportunity just past the half hour mark, they ensured they didn't repeat their earlier mistake.

Andy Robertson's bizarre pass across his own area eventually hit a white shirt in Iwobi, and although the defence was quick to try and close him down, the forward found the required space on his left foot to fire the hosts ahead.

And things continued to get better for Fulham in a remarkable first-half.

Moments after taking the lead, a cute bit of skill from Muniz at the edge of the area left Van Dijk helpless and the striker through on goal. His driven effort went through the legs of Kelleher to make it 3-1.

Diogo Jota nearly halved the deficit early into the second-half but he was denied by a solid save from Leno who was quick to close down the one-on-one opportunity.

Substitute Diaz did find the net as the game entered the final 20 minutes. He linked up with Conor Bradley, who was brought on moments earlier, to fire in with a neat finish into the bottom corner.

Liverpool pushed for the equaliser. Jones' header found the gloves of Leno as Fulham's nerves were evident while Harvey Elliott struck the crossbar.

Leno continued to be tested but the visitors failed to carve open another clear cut opportunity to score with Fulham gaining a significant three points in their quest for European football next season.

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