Premier League

Klopp’s Reds hang on for three crucial points

Harvey Elliott celebrates scoring

Liverpool scraped their first win of the Premier League season with a nervy 9-0 win over an impressive Bournemouth side.

Scott Parker’s Cherries were unfortunate enough to be on the wrong end of a wounded animal at Anfield as the hosts ran riot in a particularly goal-laden first half.

Luis Diaz and Harvey Elliott put Liverpool 2-0 up after just six minutes, before Trent Alexander-Arnold and Roberto Firmino, who had assisted each of the previous three goals, doubled that lead.

Virgil van Dijk then headed a corner home as Liverpool scored five times in the opening 45 minutes of a Premier League game for the first time in their history.

They threatened to break all sorts of records when Chris Mepham scored an own goal within a minute of the restart, with Firmino’s second strike on the hour setting up a grand finish.

But the Reds had to settle only for equalling the record margin for a Premier League victory, with Fabio Carvalho and Diaz rounding off the scoring with five minutes to go.

The Cherries join Southampton and Ipswich in suffering a 9-0 defeat in the competition.

It was a remarkable afternoon at a rocking Anfield, where Liverpool scored within 150 seconds of kick-off.

Firmino showed intelligence and composure when collecting a loose ball to jink away from danger and clip a cross from the right to Diaz, who impressively headed beyond Mark Travers.

The goal was rubberstamped after a VAR check and Liverpool doubled their advantage in the sixth minute.

Mohamed Salah cut in from the right and Firmino’s touch inside was met by an Elliott snapshot from the edge of the box that flew in.

Diaz saw a goal ruled out for offside and Salah somehow failed to turn home at the far post from Elliott’s cross-shot as Liverpool continued in the ascendancy.

Salah got a shot away and Alexander-Arnold collected a return pass from Firmino, continuing to unleash a thumping 25-yard strike that whizzed into the top left-hand corner.

Firmino would have a goal of his own three minutes later.

Salah’s attempted pass on right flank ricocheted cruelly off Bournemouth’s Marcus Tavernier and flew towards the six-yard box, where Firmino reacted to stretch and direct home.

The visitors were hit by a fifth on the stroke of half-time. Travers pushed a long-range Firmino shot behind for a corner, which Andy Robertson sent in for Van Dijk to power home.

The Anfield onslaught continued after the break as Bournemouth conceded their sixth within a minute of the second half…

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