Liverpool beat Brighton 2-0 at Anfield in round eight of the Premier League on 25 October, with both goals arriving in a four-minute burst midway through the first half. A Florian Wirtz shot deflected in off Pascal Gross for an own goal in the 17th minute, and Alexander Isak doubled the lead soon afterwards. According to Bongdaplus, Andoni Iraola's side now have 15 points and sit fourth, 1 point behind third-placed Brighton and 6 points off the top two. The club's official site says it was Liverpool's fourth straight win in all competitions; for Brighton it ended a run of wins and clean sheets in the league.
Two goals in four minutes
Storm Boelo was blowing outside, but conditions inside Anfield were calm enough to vindicate the decision to play, the Guardian notes. Brighton were hit early when full-back Ferdi Kadioglu was injured and replaced by Costinha in the sixth minute (Bongdaplus), and they should have led in the 14th, when Yasin Ayari blazed over from a Gross cut-back, as Liverpool's match report describes.
Liverpool made them pay. Ronald Araujo won two duels in a row on the right and crossed; the ball broke to Wirtz, whose first-time shot took a deflection off Gross and beat Bart Verbruggen. It was credited as an own goal. Moments later Olivier Boscagli's clearance struck Bradley Barcola, the France international brushed him aside and delivered for Isak to side-foot into the far corner.
Brighton's best reply came in the 36th minute, when a risky Alisson pass gave the ball away and Ayari struck the post from distance, according to both the Guardian and Liverpool. Verbruggen then tipped away a powerful Araujo drive before the break.
Holding firm after the break
Brighton sent on Jack Hinshelwood for Boscagli at half-time and pushed more men forward, but too many overhit crosses and poor final balls meant Alisson was rarely tested, the Guardian reports. Bongda24h counts just one Brighton shot on target all game, while Liverpool had only around 35% of the ball, their second-lowest share in a home Premier League win since 2003/04.
Iraola explained the approach in his press conference, as transcribed by Liverpool: "In the second half, obviously we defended lower, we didn't give so much space." He was "very happy overall for these four wins" and singled out Araujo's battling: "I think we all enjoyed watching Ronald fighting."
Brighton head coach Fabian Hürzeler praised his side for taking the game to Liverpool after falling two goals behind. "The difference was that they scored and we didn’t," he said, according to the Guardian, adding that "there is a missed opportunity here".
The one worry for Liverpool is Wirtz, who twisted his ankle in a challenge and was replaced by Trey Nyoni after 65 minutes. Iraola does not believe it is serious, according to the club, but noted: "It doesn't look very big but we are playing every three days so we need to see where he is."
The numbers
Compiled from the Guardian, Bongda24h and Liverpool's official site:
| Stat | Figure |
|---|---|
| Isak's Premier League goals | 6 goals in his last 6 appearances |
| Isak's scoring run | 3 league games in a row, first time since January 2025 |
| Liverpool's winning run | 4 in all competitions |
| Premier League clean sheets | 4, behind only Arsenal and Brighton (5 each) |
| Brighton shots on target | 1 |
The Guardian notes this was Liverpool's first home league win of the season. Bongda24h adds that it was their first home Premier League win since April, ending a five-match run without one (four draws, one defeat), and it spared them from going winless in their first four home games of a league season, something that has happened only three times before, in 1894/95, 1911/12 and 2012/13. Liverpool have also never lost any of 127 home Premier League games in which they led by two or more goals at half-time (124 wins, 3 draws), per Bongda24h.
For Brighton, the defeat came after a superb spell: Bongda24h says they arrived third and had not conceded during their latest winning run. Despite the loss they stay third on 16 points.
What's next
According to Bongdaplus, Liverpool face Chelsea in the League Cup before meeting Arsenal in round nine of the Premier League. Arsenal drew level on points with Manchester City by beating Everton 2-0 (see Arsenal 2-0 Everton). Before then, Liverpool will be waiting on the medical assessment of Wirtz's ankle.