Liverpool ended their Premier League slump with a composed 2–0 victory over Aston Villa at Anfield, as Mohamed Salah netted his 250th goal for the club to seal a vital win.
Goals from Salah and Ryan Gravenberch ensured Arne Slot’s side snapped a run of four consecutive league defeats, moving up to third in the table – level on points with Bournemouth and seven behind leaders Arsenal, who beat Burnley earlier in the day.
Confidence was fragile after six losses in seven across all competitions, and Liverpool endured a nervy opening spell. Villa’s Morgan Rogers struck the post in the fifth minute, while Giorgi Mamardashvili had to react sharply to tip Matty Cash’s deflected cross onto the bar.
Dominik Szoboszlai went close twice for the hosts, first dragging a shot wide before forcing Emiliano Martínez into a save from a free-kick. Liverpool thought they had gone ahead in the 43rd minute through Hugo Ekitiké’s header, but VAR ruled it out for offside.
Just before half-time, a misplaced pass from Martínez to Pau Torres fell straight to Salah, who coolly slotted into the net. The goal made him only the third player in Liverpool’s history to reach 250 goals, joining Roger Hunt (285) and Ian Rush (346). It also brought him level with Wayne Rooney for the most Premier League goal involvements (276) for a single club.
Liverpool doubled their lead before the hour when Gravenberch’s shot from outside the box took a deflection off Torres and beat Martínez.
Villa tried to respond through substitutes Ross Barkley and Donyell Malen, but neither could test Mamardashvili as their shots went off target. At the other end, Salah spurned two late chances on the counter to make it three.
The night worsened for Villa when Tyrone Mings limped off in stoppage time with a suspected hamstring injury.
Liverpool’s win provided a timely boost ahead of a tough week featuring fixtures against Real Madrid in Europe and Manchester City in the league.
