DIOGO JOTA came off the bench after eight weeks out to prove exactly why Arne Slot believes in him so much.
The Portuguese striker helped his boss and his 10-man team dodge a bullet after they went behind twice and spent all but 17 minutes of this crazy clash with ten men after Andy Robertson was shown a straight red.
Another sub in Rodrigo Muniz thought he had won it for Fulham late on, but much later still Jota produced in style.
Slot, who makes no bones to anybody, including the mercurial Darwin Nunez, that he sees Jota as his No 1 striker, went wild on the touchline as that 86th minute shot hit the net.
For he had watched a team he had already warned to buck up their ideas following their midweek win over Girona, struggle desperately at times.
And that was before Robertson’s dismissal for bringing down Harry Wilson.
Yet somehow they ground it out, hit first by Andreas Pereira’s opener, to keep a five – point lead at the top of the Prem when after Muniz scored it looked certain that Slot would suffer only his second defeat in charge.
The one question mark all the way through his startling start as Jurgen Klopp’s successor has been over his side’s defensive fragility.
True enough, going forward they had gone great guns and went into this Cottagers clash having scored two or more goals in seven straight Prem wins – their best run in over three years.
They also went into the game hunting down their Prem scoring record for a calendar year sitting 12 short of the 88 produced in 2019.
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But they had continually rode their luck at the back and 11 minutes in fortune failed them although Marco Silva’s side did slice through their rear guard brilliantly.
Wilson started the move with a sweeping ball across field to Alex Iwobi who deftly touched on for Antonee Robertson.
The left back powered down his flank before delivering a high, searching cross.
Pereira ghosted in behind Robertson and went for it.
His effort was all acrobatics and ariel style as he connected with a right – footed volley in front of The Kop.
Alisson might have saved the close – range strike but what was soon to develop into a horror afternoon for Robertson began for his deflection ensured the goalkeeper had no chance of saving the situation.
Six minutes later the Scotland captain was walking. And he had no excuses.
Wilson found himself in plenty of space as he made his way towards the Liverpool goal but Robertson looked to have taken control of the situation as he closed him down.
Instead he mis-controlled, Wilson re – gained possession and ten yards outside of the box the left back whacked him with a wild swipe.
It took VAR Stuart Atwell a full three minutes to confirm to referee Tony Harrington that Wilson had been denied an obvious goal scoring opportunity, mainly because the Fulham man had flirted with offside.
But really, Harrington would have made a fool of himself had he ignored Atwell’s advice and Robbo headed off looking more than a tad shame-faced.
Slot, no well – known for how calm he is on the touchline, still looked red-faced, maybe thinking to himself that he was right to deliver that withering blast in Spain.
Liverpool hadn’t looked great going forward, far less in allowing Wilson an opportunity much earlier.
They looked flat, uninspired. Nothing like a side lording it at the top of the Prem and the Champions League table after that six successive win in Spain..
Almost certainly there was another from him in the privacy of the dressing room at half time.
For right from the re-start the Dutchman’s team came alive. Whatever button he pushed, it worked.
Mo Salah, who had drifted through the game like so many of his team mates, found space mid-way into the Fulham half and sent forward a superb, deep cross.
Even so, it took a superhuman effort for Gakpo to get to it but still, he flew through the air and made it about two feet off the deck, his header just beating a stunned Bernd Leno at the near post.
Less than sixty seconds after that 47th minute equaliser Slot’s fellow – countryman was asking another question of the goalkeeper who desperately scrambled to save the low shot.
Things now got tetchy and tense, Curtis Jones the fifth to be yellow –carded with Robertson already having seen red for a fierce challenge on Iwobi.
That decision by whistler Harrington produced a scream of complaint from Slot and he went into the book too, his third caution of the season meaning he’ll be suspended for Wednesday’s Carabao Cup meeting with Southampton.
But much worse was to come after Salah lost his composure and lashed wide from Dominik Szoboszlai.
For sub Muniz delivered struck another blow for Fulham in the 76th minute at the end of the lighting move that showed Robertson wasn’t the only Liverpool full back to be having a nightmare time of it.
Not for the first time Robinson got beyond Trent Alexander-Arnold down Fulham’s right, finding Iwobi, who then squared for the on – rushing skipper with the Liverpool defender trailing in his wake.
His low cross was met by the front man who had replaced Raul Jimenez ten minutes earlier, his touch at the near post skidding into Alison’s net thanks to a deflection off the right heel of Joe Gomez.
The Kop fell silent. Except those fearing the worst reckoned without Jota who turned, jet – heeled, and delivered, his venomous low strike from the edge of the box the picture of why Slot rates him so highly.
