Vitezslav Jaros was the unlikely hero for Liverpool in their 1-0 win over Crystal Palace, stepping off the bench to make his debut in place of the injured Alisson as Arne Slot’s side went four points clear at the top of the Premier League.
With regular back-up Caoimhin Kelleher also out injured, 23-year-old third-choice Jaros was thrust into the action and brilliantly denied Eberechi Eze when the Palace ace was played in by sub Jean-Philippe Mateta for a big chance late on.
Liverpool had been on course for a routine win with an hour played thanks to Diogo Jota’s first-half strike but Mateta made a difference from the bench. However, after a string of stops from Alisson, his novice replacement helped Slot’s men to a sixth win in seven matches, while Palace’s wait for a first success this season goes on.
Palace had found the net inside a minute when Eddie Nketiah dinked a shot over Alisson but the striker was well offside and for the next hour Liverpool took control of the contest. Diogo Jota marked his 100th start for Liverpool with a trademark finish from Cody Gakpo’s low cross and the Portuguese could easily have grabbed a hat-trick.
He miscued later in the first half from Ryan Gravenberch’s cross, amid chances for Gakpo, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Virgil van Dijk, and then somehow nodded a free header wide from close range after the break when he met Alexander-Arnold’s clipped pass.
That chance finally forced Oliver Glasner to turn to his bench to try to spark some life into his lacklustre side and the introduction of Mateta made a noticeable difference.
Palace – who had forced a good save from Alisson on the stroke of half-time through Ismaila Sarr – were suddenly able to sustain attacks, working the Liverpool goalkeeper through an Nketiah drive, an Eze shot which was parried and Trevoh Chalobah’s flick from a corner when appeals for a penalty when Van Dijk pulled back Marc Guehi were waved away.
The atmosphere was at last ignited and Palace, so tame for the first 60 minutes, tackled with more intensity. Their hopes of grabbing a point were boosted when Alisson limped off clutching his hamstring but Jaros seized his chance.
Will Hughes immediately looked to test the stand-in, hooking a shot narrowly wide, but the Czech international kept his focus to keep out Eze, punched away a cross and dived at the feet of Mateta in stoppage time.
For the first hour Palace had been a world away from the side which was so intense, so inventive and operating with such high quality at the back end of last season when a win at Anfield sparked a run of six wins in their final seven.
Seven games into this season they still can’t buy a victory. On three of the four occasions they’ve started a Premier League season in this way they have been relegated. Alarm bells are ringing – but they can at least be encouraged by that late flurry.
More to follow.
