Late Salah, Chiesa goals give Liverpool 4-2 win in thrilling opener
On a bittersweet evening charged with emotion after the July death of Liverpool forward Diogo Jota, newcomer Hugo Ekitike bagged a goal on his debut to put the hosts ahead after 37 minutes and Cody Gakpo doubled the lead in the 49th.
But Antoine Semenyo, who was the target of racist abuse in the first half that led to a pause in the game, pulled one back for the visitors in the 64th minute and completed a double 12 minutes later to rock Liverpool and shock the home fans.
However, substitute Chiesa sent the Liverpool faithful away happy with an 88th-minute strike after goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic swatted away a ball into the box by Salah, who scored himself deep into added time to wrap up the three points. REUTERS
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
38 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Mixed Martial Arts-Relentless Chimaev beats du Plessis to win UFC middleweight title
Chechen-born wrestling specialist Khamzat Chimaev completely dominated Dricus du Plessis to win the UFC middleweight championship at UFC 319 on Saturday night, smothering the South African with his grappling. Chimaev scored a unanimous decision victory on the judges' scorecards. He set the tone in the opening minute, shooting for an early takedown to bring the fight to the mat and pinning the South African in a crucifix position before raining punches with his left hand, but the blows did little damage and du Plessis survived. Round two began in much the same fashion as the 31-year-old again brought the fight to the mat. This time he stuck to his opponent's back like a limpet to threaten with knee strikes and choke attempts, and Du Plessis was spent in the third and fourth rounds in similarly poor positions. There was a brief sliver of hope late in the final frame as du Plessis finally managed to get himself into a threatening position, but it was too little, too late, and Chimaev was declared the winner, with all three judges scoring the fight 50 to 44 in his favour. "I never game-plan. I just came in, work like I do in the gym. That guy is strong, I couldn't finish, respect that guy, he's the only champion who was saying my name. This guy has real heart, a real lion, a real African lion," Chimaev said, the new championship belt around his waist. Du Plessis took his dethroning with good grace before promising to win the title back. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore I want to divorce my husband and be a single mother: More victims speaking up on emotional abuse World Trump drops Ukraine ceasefire demand after Putin summit Singapore Buying hope: Inside S'pore's love affair with the lottery Singapore She won big in Genting, but getting $240k winnings back to Singapore was dicey Life These cats may have disabilities, but they are resilient and capable of being affectionate Singapore PM Wong's National Day Rally speech to begin at 6.45pm on Aug 17 Singapore Motorcyclist dies after multi-vehicle collision on TPE Opinion Confessions of a born-again Singaporean "He deserves this 100 percent, he beat me fair and square tonight. He was the better man tonight, and I'll be back. I'll come and get my belt back, but for now, it's his and he deserves it, and he has to enjoy it," he said. REUTERS
Straits Times
9 hours ago
- Straits Times
Masters warns racist abuse will result in banning, possible prosecution
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox LIVERPOOL, England - Premier League chief executive Richard Masters issued a warning on Saturday that anyone guilty of racist abuse would be banned from stadiums and could face prosecution. His comments came a day after Bournemouth's Antoine Semenyo was the target of racist abuse during his side's 4-2 loss to Liverpool at Anfield. "No Premier League footballer should ever have to, in their workplace or online, suffer that sort of abuse. It is important that we keep saying that," Masters told BBC Sport. "It is a problem for society. It leaks into football and it shouldn't happen in a football stadium. It shouldn't happen online. "It makes people like me and other football people in charge of the game think twice about what else we can do to ensure that these things don't happen in the future. "If you are found to be using discriminatory language inside a football ground you will be ejected, second you will be banned and third you may face criminal charges." Friday's game was briefly halted in the 29th minute to address the incident, with referee Anthony Taylor summoning both managers to the touchline for a briefing. Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk and Bournemouth counterpart Adam Smith were then called over to the benches for further instructions before play resumed four minutes later. Ghana international Semenyo went on to score twice after play resumed. Merseyside Police confirmed that the 47-year-old man from Liverpool who was ejected after the incident had been arrested on suspicion of a racially aggravated public order offence and taken into custody to be interviewed. Semenyo thanked his teammates, Liverpool, match officials and the "entire football family" for their support in a statement on Saturday. "Last night at Anfield will stay with me forever -- not because of one person's words, but because of how the entire football family stood together," Semenyo wrote on Instagram. The incident at Anfield followed reports of Tottenham Hotspur's French forward Mathys Tel being subjected to racist abuse on social media after missing a penalty in his side's UEFA Super Cup defeat by Paris St Germain on Wednesday. REUTERS
CNA
9 hours ago
- CNA
Masters warns racist abuse will result in banning, possible prosecution
LIVERPOOL, England :Premier League chief executive Richard Masters issued a warning on Saturday that anyone guilty of racist abuse would be banned from stadiums and could face prosecution. His comments came a day after Bournemouth's Antoine Semenyo was the target of racist abuse during his side's 4-2 loss to Liverpool at Anfield. "No Premier League footballer should ever have to, in their workplace or online, suffer that sort of abuse. It is important that we keep saying that," Masters told BBC Sport. "It is a problem for society. It leaks into football and it shouldn't happen in a football stadium. It shouldn't happen online. "It makes people like me and other football people in charge of the game think twice about what else we can do to ensure that these things don't happen in the future. "If you are found to be using discriminatory language inside a football ground you will be ejected, second you will be banned and third you may face criminal charges." Friday's game was briefly halted in the 29th minute to address the incident, with referee Anthony Taylor summoning both managers to the touchline for a briefing. Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk and Bournemouth counterpart Adam Smith were then called over to the benches for further instructions before play resumed four minutes later. Ghana international Semenyo went on to score twice after play resumed. Merseyside Police confirmed that the 47-year-old man from Liverpool who was ejected after the incident had been arrested on suspicion of a racially aggravated public order offence and taken into custody to be interviewed. Semenyo thanked his teammates, Liverpool, match officials and the "entire football family" for their support in a statement on Saturday. "Last night at Anfield will stay with me forever - not because of one person's words, but because of how the entire football family stood together," Semenyo wrote on Instagram. The incident at Anfield followed reports of Tottenham Hotspur's French forward Mathys Tel being subjected to racist abuse on social media after missing a penalty in his side's UEFA Super Cup defeat by Paris St Germain on Wednesday.
