'Close to crisis' - National media give verdict on Liverpool's victory at Tottenham Hotspur
A look at how the national media reacted to Liverpool's 2-1 win at Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday
Liverpool extended their unbeaten run to six games with a nervy 2-1 win over Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday evening. The hosts were reduced to 10 men after around half an hour when Xavi Simons was dismissed for a rake down Virgil van Dijk's Achilles before Spurs were then sent to nine after Cristian Romero kicked out at Ibrahima Konate when already on a booking.
That was after Alexander Isak and Hugo Ekitike had given the visitors a two-goal cushion but a strike from Richarlison set up a tense finish to the game as Arne Slot's men held on against the battling nine of Thomas Frank's team.
The ECHO, as ever, was at the game to run the rule over proceedings. You can find our match verdict, player ratings and analysis here. Our live blog offering and the reaction of Slot was also covered in our exhaustive match-day package.
OPINION
Our colleagues from the national media were also on hand to give their considered takes. Here's what they made of things on what was an eventful night in North London.
Riath Al-Samarrai, of the Daily Mail, pens: "If Alexander Isak is to one day make a success of his move to Liverpool, then it will need to be achieved in the absence of luck. Whatever else folk think of him, the poor fella has none, evidenced by one swing of his left leg that helped win a game and quite possibly wrecked his own season, too.
"A full diagnosis of an injury to his knee will come in time, but lengthy treatment and the sight of him being helped from the pitch here stirred fears of a potentially serious issue.
"If that is the case, it will be desperately unfortunate, not least for the fact that it was sustained in the act of scoring for 1-0 just 11 minutes after entering the game as a half-time substitute.
"Sympathy around his previous difficulties has been limited owing to the methods he deployed in leaving Newcastle, but only the cold-hearted wouldn’t feel for him in this scenario, which encompassed a huge contribution to Liverpool winning a wild game.
"By that, we should offer a fuller explanation of a match that overflowed with tantrums, bonkers tidal shifts and an enormous volume of cards from the pocket of referee John Brooks. Of the latter, there were eight yellows, two of which were shown to Cristian Romero, and one straight red for Xavi Simons at 0-0 that will inspire major frustrations within Thomas Frank."
The Telegraph's Sam Wallace writes: "By the end, Arne Slot’s players were hanging on for a win against a dysfunctional nine-man Tottenham Hotspur team with one of the worst home records in the club’s history – so not all of this felt like a great triumph for the defending Premier League champions.
"Liverpool are back up to fifth place and with the first three-game winning streak since their season went into nosedive at the end of September. In many respects it unfolded as Slot and Fenway Sports Group would have hoped: goals for Alexander Isak and Hugo Ekitike, a Premier League assist at last for Florian Wirtz and no post-match remarks from Mohamed Salah. And yet there was much they will regret.
"Once again, Liverpool very nearly folded at the end – just as Spurs were themselves doing their best to self-destruct. A strange kind of game between two sides who both seem very close to a crisis of confidence at any moment. There is, for Liverpool, the added concern of an injury to Isak whose brief eight minutes on the pitch after coming on at half-time encompassed much action.
"Isak was kicked once by Rodrigo Bentancur before dispatching the first goal of the game just moments before Micky van de Ven’s tackle trapped the striker’s left leg. He could not even get to his feet to celebrate. Isak would go off with an arm around a shoulder of each of the two supporting physiotherapists, although some weight was placed on his injured left leg."
On the pages of The Mirror, Felix Keith writes: "After a drab opening half-hour, the crowd were finally brought to their feet, but not by a chance. Simons was closing down Van Dijk when he trod on the Liverpool captain's calf. Having initially issued a yellow card, referee John Brooks was sent to the pitchside monitor and the Dutchman's fate was sealed. "The Premier League Match Centre explained: "After VAR review, the referee overturned the original decision of yellow card to Simons and issued a red card for serious foul play. Referee announcement: 'After review, the Tottenham No.7, with studs, catches the Liverpool player [No.4] on the calf high - it's an act of serious foul play. My final decision is red card.' "Gary Neville's take on Sky Sports was slightly different in tone: 'Simons was never going to get there. He rakes his studs right down the back of Van Dijk's leg. That's not clever. That's not a good challenge. He is absolutely nowhere near the football. Malicious, nasty, reckless? Whatever you want to call it. Stupidity.'"
Jamie Braidwood, of The Independent, writes: "In a flash, the pieces finally clicked together. It took less than six seconds for Liverpool’s £300m trio to rip through Tottenham’s 10 men after Cristian Romero’s careless pass from defence. "Hugo Ekitike looked up and picked out Florian Wirtz, suddenly free in the space he has spent so much time trying to find. Wirtz took a touch and sensed the run immediately, producing the pass. And there was Alexander Isak, supplying the movement and the first-time finish, as well as the ruthlessness Liverpool wanted when they smashed their transfer record to sign him. "And then, like a window that closed as quickly as it had opened, a vision of Liverpool’s future disappeared. Isak, upon scoring just his second Premier League goal since his record £125m move from Newcastle, was clattered into by Micky van de Ven as the Tottenham defender attempted the block. The striker’s face revealed the immediate concern, as did the sight of Liverpool’s players cutting their celebrations short. "As soon as Isak had lift off, he was grounded again. On as a half-time substitute, he limped off 10 minutes later with an ankle injury that could sideline him for the foreseeable future."