While there was a lot of talk about the return of a former Liverpool hero to Anfield on Saturday in new Aston Villa boss Steven Gerrard, it was current Reds icon Mohamed Salah who proved to be decisive on the day.
The Egyptian won a penalty and then converted it in the second half in front of the Kop, giving Liverpool a vital 1-0 win over Gerrard's side.
With a 1-0 win for Manchester City over Wolverhampton Wanderers and a dramatic 3-2 victory for Chelsea against Leeds, it was crucial Jurgen Klopp's side got over the line on Saturday and kept themselves in the thick of the race for top spot.
Here are the latest Liverpool headlines after another dramatic day on Merseyside.
Can Salah rival Gerrard as Liverpool's all-time greatest player? Let us know in the comments below!
Gerrard laments 'harsh' decisions
The Aston Villa manager believes his team were on the end of some "harsh" decisions on Saturday at Anfield.
Liverpool were awarded a penalty for a foul by Tyrone Mings on Salah, although Alisson Becker's swipe at Danny Ings was not deemed sufficient enough for the referee to point to the penalty spot.
"Ultimately the game has been decided by a penalty," said Gerrard. "There were two penalty incidents in the game, Liverpool got theirs - if you look at that one, Salah fouls Mings first. We didn’t get ours. It feels harsh.
"If an arm goes anywhere near Alisson, it’s a foul. So why isn’t a foul given for Danny Ings? They are the questions I’d like answering, but I can’t answer them right now."
Read the story in full HERE.
Gerrard gets Anfield welcome
Although the match was competitive when the action got underway, unsurprisingly there was a lot of love for Gerrard before and after the game.
The Liverpool icon came out of the Anfield tunnel after his team and while the Kop didn't sing his name, the Villa boss was did receive a rapturous round of applause from the home supporters.
Since moving to Villa, Gerrard has enjoyed a fine start, with three wins in five games. The only defeats he has suffered so far have come against champions Manchester City and Jurgen Klopp's red-hot Liverpool side.
Read the story in full HERE.
Liverpool in control against Villa
Although Gerrard clearly felt hard done by some of the decisions from the officials at Anfield, even he conceded that the Reds were the stronger side over the course of the contest.
Villa had goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez to thank for keeping his team in the game for long spells, as he was on hand to make a number of crucial saves.
Salah was again a major threat on the right flank and was ruthless in punishing Mings when he finally got into a one-on-one situation in the penalty area. As he so often does, the forward put away his penalty with ease.
Freddie Keighly looked at some other talking points from the encounter, including the performance of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and some uncharacteristic defensive lapses.
Read the story in full HERE.
