Liverpool has equalled the biggest win in English Premier League history after a 9-0 hammering of promoted Bournemouth overnight.
Jurgen Klopp’s side started the campaign slowly, with surprise draws against Fulham and Crystal Palace compounded by last week's loss to bitter rivals Manchester United. But Liverpool's fearsome attack looked back to its best at Anfield as the team recorded its first league win and Roberto Firmino and Luis Diaz both grabbed two goals.
It's only the fifth time a team scored nine goals in the Premier League, with Man United (twice) and Leicester the only previous teams to win 9-0. Liverpool also won 9-0 over Crystal Palace in 1989, before the top-flight changed its name.
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“We scored some wonderful goals from all areas and didn’t stop,” Klopp said. “It was 5-0 at halftime. How often does it happen that a team take their foot off the gas? We just wanted to have a 100 per cent satisfying experience we can use going from here.”
Firmino, starting in place of suspended summer signing Darwin Nunez, produced a stunning first-half display, which began with Diaz heading home his clipped cross within three minutes of the kickoff.
Firmino then provided the assist for Harvey Elliott’s first league goal — a fizzing strike from distance that would have been goal of the day were it not for the Trent Alexander-Arnold stunner that followed.
The Brazil forward set up that goal and celebrated one of his own soon after when turning in a deflected cross – his first league goal at Anfield since December 2020.
Virgil van Dijk powered home Liverpool’s fifth on the stroke of halftime, while the onslaught continued just after the break in the form of Chris Mepham’s own-goal.
Firmino grabbed a second of the afternoon before leaving to a standing ovation.
The goals did not stop there, though, as Fabio Carvalho scored his first for the club and Diaz grabbed his second.
Elsewhere in the overnight EPL action, Manchester City also showed that it can never be counted out after the defending champion found itself trailing by two goals for the second straight game.
Erling Haaland netted a second half hat trick as City rallied to beat Crystal Palace 4-2 at home — having managed to salvage only a 3-3 draw at Newcastle last weekend.
Arsenal maintained its perfect start to the season by rallying for a 2-1 win over Fulham, while Manchester United and Chelsea also won on a good day for the traditional powers.
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United made it back-to-back wins in the league for the first time since February by beating Southampton 1-0 away thanks to a second-half goal by Bruno Fernandes.
Chelsea overcame the early sending off of Conor Gallagher to beat Leicester 2-1 at Stamford Bridge behind two goals from Raheem Sterling.
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