Liverpool avoided a home defeat by securing a late 1-1 draw against Sunderland on Wednesday, with the equalizer coming from a heavily deflected shot credited as an own goal.
The visitors, Sunderland, looked set to break a 40-year drought without a victory at Anfield when Chemsdine Talbi capitalized on a rare error by Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk in the 67th minute. Talbi’s resulting shot ricocheted off the centre-back and into the net past goalkeeper Alisson Becker.
Arne Slot’s side, still trying to build momentum after ending a historic losing streak on Sunday, struggled to break down a resilient Sunderland defense. The much-needed parity finally arrived in the 81st minute. New signing Florian Wirtz dribbled past two defenders and fired a shot that was deflected significantly by Sunderland’s Nordi Mukiele, resulting in an unfortunate own goal for the Black Cats.
Sunderland nearly snatched all three points in stoppage time, but a heroic goal-line clearance by Federico Chiesa denied Wilson Isidor after the striker had rounded Alisson.
The draw leaves Liverpool in eighth place with 22 points, while Sunderland moves up to sixth on 23 points, highlighting the tight race for European qualification spots.
