LEICESTER, England — Title-chasers Liverpool slipped to their second Premier League defeat of the season after substitute Ademola Lookman earned Leicester City a hard-fought 1-0 victory on Tuesday.
Liverpool dominated the first half against an injury-hit Leicester and looked set to take a deserved lead when they were awarded a 16th-minute penalty, only for Egyptian Mohamed Salah to see his spot kick saved by home goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel.
The chances kept coming for the visitors, with Sadio Mane blazing over when he should have scored early in the second half.
Liverpool’s profligacy proved costly as Lookman fired Leicester in front just before the hour mark, sparking scenes of euphoria at the King Power Stadium.
It was backs to the wall for Leicester after that, but they dug in to secure a win that leaves second-placed Liverpool six points adrift of leaders Manchester City, as Foxes coach Brendan Rodgers got one over on the side he used to manage.
After conceding six at Manchester City on Boxing Day, Leicester’s morale-boosting win moved them up to ninth in the standings.
“Definitely, it was well deserved (for Leicester),” Liverpool coach Juergen Klopp told Amazon Prime. “It was a very strange game. We were just not good enough.
“We still had enough chances. What we did with the balls was just not right. We played a really bad game, so it was well deserved.”
Liverpool, who had a five-day break prior to their trip to the King Power after Boxing Day’s fixture against Leeds United was postponed, looked much fresher than Leicester, playing their second game in three days, and soon took control of the match. — Reuters