Liverpool stay in top-four race after Salah winner

LIVERPOOL, England (AP):

LIVERPOOL TWICE relinquished a lead before scoring a winner through Mohamed Salah as a 3-2 victory over relegation-threatened Nottingham Forest preserved hopes of a top-four finish in the English Premier League yesterday.

Diogo Jota put Liverpool 1-0 and 2-1 ahead at Anfield only for goals by Neco Williams – a former Liverpool player – and Morgan Gibbs-White to pull Forest level.

The last of five goals in a wild spell of 23 second-half minutes was converted by Salah, who side-footed in Trent Alexander-Arnold’s free kick in the 70th minute for his 16th of the league campaign.

Liverpool jumped to seventh in the standings, six points behind Newcastle in fourth and three behind Tottenham in fifth. Newcastle host Tottenham today.

Forest, who is in next-to-last place, remained without a win since February 5 and have lost six of its last seven games, leaving manager Steve Cooper under lots of pressure after he was told results had to improve by owner Evangelos Marinakis this month.

MISSED CHANCE

Brennan Johnson could have grabbed an equaliser for Forest when the substitute lobbed goalkeeper Alisson Becker but the ball bounced off the crossbar.

Jota justified Jurgen Klopp’s decision to name an unchanged side for the third straight game for the first time since January 2020.

The Portugal international, who made just 10 appearances in the first six months of the season because of injury, ended a long goal drought with two in Monday’s 6-1 demolition of Leeds and repeated the feat five days later.

Forest fans unfurled a banner during the match that paid respect to the 97 Liverpool fans who died in the Hillsborough Stadium disaster in 1989. Forest were Liverpool’s opponent in the match.

A message on the banner called for an end to tragedy chanting, which has blighted some recent games involving Liverpool.