Mohamed Salah ended a scoring drought to make Premier League history against Manchester United, but the Liverpool attacker was never worried about his barren run.
After six appearances without a goal in all competitions, Salah added to Luis Diaz's opener in the 4-0 victory over United that sent the Reds top of the Premier League on Tuesday.
The Egypt international doubled his tally in the 85th minute, becoming the first player to score five Premier League goals against United in a single campaign.
Salah's double ended a two-month wait for a goal from open play in the Premier League, with his prior three having come from the penalty spot.
"I said before many times, I score many goals for this club. It's going to keep coming," Salah told Sky Sports.
"Sometimes you have bad luck, but the team winning is the most important thing. If the team wasn't winning, I wouldn't be happy. But if the team's winning, everything's going to come, so I was not worried about that."
Sadio Mane was also on target as Liverpool completed a double over the Red Devils by an aggregate scoreline of 9-0. The only time United have suffered a heavier joint loss in their league history was 11-0 against Sunderland in 1892-93.
Asked to explain Liverpool's dominance of the rivalry this season, Salah said: "They make our life easy, in the midfield and the back. They always try to give us the ball in a one-on-one.
"When we defend well, we had a clean sheet here and a clean sheet there, they make our lives easier to score. We go to the game and just want to score. Once we get the first, we want the second. Once we get the second, we want the third.
"It's a top performance from us here and away also, so we'll hopefully just carry on like this."
City can replace Liverpool at the summit when they take on Brighton and Hove Albion on Wednesday, and Salah acknowledged it is a tall order to expect Pep Guardiola's side to drop points.
"It's great [to be top]. Let's wait until tomorrow because City also is not an easy team to drop points," said Salah.
"We just have to focus on ourselves and the rest is not in our hands. We just focus on our games and we'll see."
Good luck Erik ten Hag.
When Manchester United announce – as expected – the Ajax boss as their next permanent manager, social media will be flooded with suggestions of what he needs to do or fix to get the club challenging for titles again, and it's going to be a long list.
On the evidence of United's performances against Liverpool – who will surely be one of the two teams to beat again in 2022-23 – this term, the chasm between the Old Trafford club and the best is at its widest in a generation.
Liverpool crushed them 5-0 at Old Trafford in November, though Tuesday's 4-0 loss at Anfield was arguably worse and probably even had interim manager Ralf Rangnick considering his own future.
The most ardent of Man Utd fans would've been feeling glum pre-match about their chances here, though there would always be a hint of 'what if'.
It's football. There could always be a freak goal, a comical own goal, one moment of individual brilliance. Throughout the history of the sport there have been countless examples of teams absorbing pressure for 90 minutes and stealing a winner.
As bad as United have been at times this season, and as good as Liverpool are in general, fixtures like this bring a sense of unpredictability – or at least they're supposed to.
As arguably the most recognised and historic rivalry in English football, the minimum one would've expected from United was a bit of desire to get one over the Reds, maybe dent their quadruple hopes. But there was no sign of such spirit until it was already too late.
Frankly, United's first-half performance was a joke. Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville, a former Red Devils captain, said before the game that this was their worst team in "30-40 years", and it was difficult to disagree with him come half-time.
Of course, it should be said that this wasn't just about United being poor: Liverpool were excellent for much of the game. Thiago Alcantara was a joy to watch in midfield as he almost single-handedly pulled Rangnick's defence and midfield this way and that. Even the Spain international's inaccurate passes were satisfying to see because you saw the invention and vision behind them.
But it was the speed, directness and ruthlessness that typifies this Liverpool team that brought the fifth-minute opener, as they cleverly worked space on the right in their own half before Sadio Mane released Trent Alexander-Arnold, who subsequently picked out Luis Diaz for a tap-in.
Their second goal was even better as they retained possession and sliced through United with a one-touch passing move that culminated in an outrageous Mane reverse pass over the defence for Mohamed Salah to collect before slotting home.
But the lack of character their visitors showed was astonishing. Liverpool seemed to have the freedom of the pitch, they passed through midfield as if Nemanja Matic, Jesse Lingard and Bruno Fernandes weren't there. Players were walking.
United reached half-time without a single shot, a first in the league since April 2018. Granted, they went on to beat Manchester City 3-2 on that occasion... But even the suggestion that something similar might've been on the cards here would've drawn laughter.
Similarly galling was the fact United only committed two fouls in the first 45. Without wanting to sound like Roy Keane ("you know what I might do, I might smash into somebody, just to make me feel better!"), when being played off the park a degree of petulance is almost to be expected, but they couldn't even muster that level of frustration.
Things did change briefly after the interval. Rangnick ditched his back three and introduced Jadon Sancho, and suddenly United looked... functional. Players were running, they were hounding their counterparts. They had a shot, then a second. A whole two shots!
Jurgen Klopp stood aghast on the touchline in the 65th minute, his mouth gaping for a full 10 seconds after Alisson had to make two saves in quick succession – they didn't count technically in the stats because an offside was erroneously given, but the Brazilian undoubtedly denied a goal that would have been given by VAR had they scored.
But United's brief improvement said more about Liverpool's post-break drop-off, and they soon snapped out of it – three minutes later it was game over, if it wasn't already. Andrew Robertson made an interception ahead of Anthony Elanga, then Diaz's pinpoint cross was expertly turned in by Mane.
Salah completed the scoring late on with a deft finish that was helped by a slight deflection. While there was a hint of fortune, it ensured the scoreline greater reflected the Reds' dominance.
The nine goals United have conceded to Liverpool this season is the most they've ever shipped against one team in a single campaign. Their 9-0 aggregate loss to the Reds over 2021-22 is their worst to one opponent in the league since 1892-93. Yes, that's 1892, not a typo of 1992.
Much of the build-up to this was dominated by talk of club structures, recruitment and 'synergy', but honestly, fans will just hope Ten Hag can instil a bit of fight, assuming he's not run for the hills already.
Lautaro Martinez's superb double fired Inter into the Coppa Italia final against Milan on Tuesday, as they ran out 3-0 victors at San Siro.
The Argentina international kept the Nerazzurri on course for a potential domestic double, after a goalless first leg last month set up a winner-takes-all clash this week.
With the Supercoppa Italia already secured against Juventus and Milan merely two points ahead with a game out of hand, Inter could yet complete a clean sweep of domestic honours.
Simone Inzaghi claimed a maiden Derby della Madonnina win with the result, and his side will now wait to discover if they face holders Juventus or Fiorentina.
With defeat leaving Stefano Pioli and his side with just the Scudetto left to fight for, though, the stage is now set for a thrilling conclusion to the Serie A season too.
The whistle for kick-off had barely sounded before Inter struck, Martinez volleying Matteo Darmian's neat cross home near the penalty spot.
Such an early goal forced Milan onto the offensive, with Rafael Leao and Alexis Saelemaekers going closest in response.
Frenetic closing exchanges to the first half saw Ivan Perisic make a goal-saving clearance on the line, before the Nerazzurri scored effectively in the next passage.
Following Marcelo Brozovic's release in transition, Martinez dinked Joaquin Correa's throughball over Mike Maignan for a second to double the lead just before half-time, and it became a mountain for Milan to climb.
The Rossoneri continued to rally after the interval and critically had Ismael Bennacer's goal disallowed, with Pierre Kalulu ruled offside. From there the air went out of the game and when Martinez bowed out with 20 minutes to go, it felt like the game was already over, even before Robin Gosens slid home a third to seal the deal.
What does it mean? Inter move towards complete collection
After dethroning Juventus' decade-long hold on Serie A last term, the Nerazzurri now have the chance to take the Bianconeri's lone remaining honour from them after victory over Milan.
It is 11 years since they last reached the final, when they claimed a 3-1 victory over Palermo to lift the trophy - and Inzaghi, a prior winner in 2019 with Lazio, will have his eyes on repeating that success, whoever they face.
Martinez continues fast start streak
After airing his grievances over discussions about his future following victory against Spezia on Friday, it was another superb reminder of the Argentine's talents at San Siro.
It took him less than 200 seconds to break open the Milan defence - a speedy return that extends a streak that has seen him involved in the last three Derby della Madonnina goals scored during the opening five minutes.
Milan wayward once more in front of goal
For a team tucked into the thick of a battle for the Scudetto, it has been remarkable that not a single player has broken into double figures on the goalscorer charts this season in Serie A.
That has in part been to Milan boasting a wealth of players who can find the back of the net - except, that prowess deserted them on Tuesday, with Rafael Leao the only one of their squad to muster more than one shot on target.
What's next?
Inter will welcome Roma to San Siro for a crucial Serie A clash on Saturday, while Milan travel to the capital to face Lazio on Sunday.
Fulham earned a third promotion to the Premier League in five seasons with their 3-0 win over Preston North End on Tuesday.
All three goals came in the first half at Craven Cottage in what became a routine game, with Aleksandar Mitrovic opening the scoring in only the ninth minute.
Fabio Carvalho doubled the margin, before Mitrovic added another before half-time.
The Cottagers have earned a 'yo-yo' reputation for bouncing between the Premier League and Championship in recent years.
They were promoted in 2018 and swiftly relegated, before going up again in 2020 and coming straight back down once more.
Now the elite ranks beckon again, with Marco Silva's team aiming to sustain top-flight status this time around.
Fulham had a 13-season spell in the elite from 2001 to 2014, which was the last time they enjoyed consecutive seasons at the top level.
Their campaign this season has been fuelled by a remarkable goal output from Mitrovic, who has now scored 40 times in the league.
Head coach Silva was appointed before the season got under way, replacing Scott Parker who moved on to join Bournemouth.
The Portuguese has previous Premier League experience from his time with Hull City, Everton and Watford.
Mohamed Salah scored twice as Liverpool went top of the Premier League thanks to a resounding 4-0 victory over an abject Manchester United at Anfield on Tuesday.
Luis Diaz and Salah were on target inside 22 minutes to put Jurgen Klopp's side on course to leapfrog defending champions Manchester City, who will hope to return to the summit when they face Brighton and Hove Albion on Wednesday.
United failed to produce a single shot in the first half of a Premier League game for the first time in four years. On that occasion they came from 2-0 down to beat City 3-2, but there were scant signs of such a stirring fightback this time.
Sadio Mane made sure of that by adding a fine finish to his exemplary assist for Salah, who sealed Liverpool's first Premier League double over United since the 2013-14 season.
The Reds wasted little time in taking the lead, with Salah exposing United's lacklustre defence and squaring for Diaz to tap home after five minutes.
The fans joined together in a touching show of support for Cristiano Ronaldo in the seventh minute, with the United forward absent following the death of his baby son.
Paul Pogba was forced off with an injury and Liverpool doubled their lead when Salah added a fine finish to a slick move involving Diaz, Joel Matip and Mane.
United showed more gumption after a change of shape for the second half from interim boss Ralf Rangnick, with half-time introduction Jadon Sancho finally working Alisson with an effort.
Alisson did well to deny Marcus Rashford and Anthony Elanga in quick succession after the hour mark, but Liverpool extended their advantage in the 68th minute when Mane swept a delivery from Diaz beyond David de Gea and into the bottom-right corner.
Salah then looped the ball over De Gea with five minutes remaining as United were emphatically consigned to a third straight Premier League away defeat for only the fourth time in the history of the competition.
What does it mean? Liverpool back on top
Man City looked destined to cruise to the title when they held a 14-point lead over Liverpool as recently as January 15, even though the Reds had two games in hand.
But Liverpool have now won 11 of their 12 games since – their only dropped points being last week's draw with Pep Guardiola's side – to put themselves firmly in contention for an unprecedented quadruple.
Thiago keeps it ticking
Thiago Alcantara again absolutely bossed the midfield for Liverpool. He completed 105 of his 110 passes – both game highs – and lost possession just six times, which was the fewest of any Reds player. His seven duels won were also more than any other player on the pitch.
Salah back on song
A run of six appearances in all competitions without a goal came to an end for Salah. These were his first Liverpool goals since March 12 and a full two months since he last converted in open play in the top flight.
What's next?
Liverpool take on Everton in the Merseyside derby on Sunday, while United are in action at Arsenal on Saturday.
Jamaica International striker Bobby Decordova-Reid’s Fulham FC will be playing Premier League football in the 2022-23 season after securing promotion to the top flight with a 3-0 victory over Preston North End in the EFL Championship at Craven Cottage on Tuesday.
Serbian striker Aleksandar Mitrovic got goals in the 9th and 41st minutes to continue a prolific EFL Championship season that has so far seen him score 40 goals in 40 games.
Portuguese midfielder Fabio Carvalho got a goal in the 31st minute before he was replaced by Reid 15 minutes before full-time.
With 86 points from 42 matches, Fulham secured their return to the highest level of English football with four games to spare.
The London-based club will be eager to improve their performance from their last Premier League season where they finished 18th in 2020-21.
Reid has seven goals and seven assists so far this season for the Cottagers and two goals in 16 appearances for the Reggae Boyz since making his debut in 2019.
Freiburg reached the DFB-Pokal final for the first time in their history with a 3-1 semi-final win at second-tier Hamburg.
Goals from Nils Petersen, Nicolas Hofler, and Vincenzo Grifo fired Freiburg into a commanding half-time lead as the visitors produced a scintillating counter-attacking display.
The Bundesliga's third-best defensive outfit then held on comfortably after the break, despite Robert Glatzel providing a late consolation for the hosts, and Freiburg will meet either RB Leipzig or Union Berlin in next month's final.
11 years after first joining the visitors, head coach Christian Streich continues to make history, with Freiburg's dreams of cup glory and a top-four Bundesliga finish remaining in their sights.
Hamburg fell behind after just 11 minutes when Petersen headed home after a goalmouth scramble, with a quick VAR check ascertaining Roland Sallai was not interfering with play.
That goal gave Freiburg a huge boost, and they doubled their lead within five minutes when Hofler's long-range strike cannoned off Sebastien Schonlau and into the roof of the net.
Hamburg almost responded when Anssi Suhonen forced a save from Mark Flekken, but were out of the contest after 35 minutes when the VAR awarded Freiburg a bizarre penalty, with Vincenzo Grifo smashing home from the spot after Moritz Heyer clumsily kicked Nico Schlotterbeck in the neck.
Suhonen had a cool finish ruled out in a marginal offside call as Hamburg's nightmare half drew to a close, before Sallai rippled the side netting with a fierce strike shortly after the break.
The 2.Bundesliga team took the game to Freiburg in the second half, with Sonny Kittel's deflected volley drawing a decent save from Flekken after 67 minutes.
Hamburg were finally rewarded for their improvement when Glatzel nodded a consolation goal after 87 minutes, and Freiburg's Ermedin Demirovic struck a post from range as the visitors claimed a historic win.
What does it mean? Fantastic Freiburg reach new heights
Freiburg had never previously reached the German domestic cup final, losing to Stuttgart on their only previous semi-final appearance in 2013.
Streich's men, however, will compete for their first major trophy in May's final, and could beat their highest-ever Bundesliga finish of fifth (in 2012-13) as they continue to chase a top-four spot.
Cup hero Petersen sets the tone
With a packed Volksparkstadion producing a boisterous atmosphere, Freiburg needed an early goal to quell any nerves, and got one through Petersen's header. The 33-year-old has now scored 12 in the competition, with no other player scoring more (Alexander Iashvilli also has 12).
Visitors make fast start count
After putting their hosts to the sword before the break, Freiburg have now scored six first-half goals in their four DFB-Pokal games this season, with only RB Leipzig scoring as many in the competition.
Streich's team also became just the second to hit three first-half goals in an away DFB-Pokal semi-final. Bayern Munich are the other team to do so at Schalke in 1984.
What's next?
Hamburg will look to revive their slim hopes of promotion from the 2.Bundesliga at Jahn Regensburg on Saturday, while Freiburg host Borussia Monchengladbach on the same day.
Dominic Thiem suffered defeat in his first ATP Tour match since June, losing at the Serbia Open to John Millman.
Thiem has been out of action since suffering a right wrist injury and the former world number three was able to claim the second set in his comeback match.
But he could not avoid a 6-3 3-6 6-4 defeat in a contest that lasted two hours and 35 minutes.
Speaking afterwards, Millman said: "It is great to be back here. I was looking forward to coming back and [playing]. All credit to Domi.
"I can't claim it was one of my biggest wins because he is just coming back from injury and I know how hard that is, coming back from three surgeries myself.
"I know it has been tough for Domi but the game is better having him back. Especially on this surface. I have got to take this win because when he gets better and fitter, it is going to be tough."
Next up for the Australian is Miomir Kecmanovic.
NextGen star Jiri Lehecka booked a meeting with second seed Andrey Rublev by beating Henri Laaksonen, while Filip Krajinovic overcame David Goffin.
At the Barcelona Open, fourth seed Cameron Norrie had to come back from a set down to see off Egor Gerasimov, though his 12th seeded fellow Briton Dan Evans lost to Lorenzo Musetti.
There were routine wins for second seed Casper Ruud, sixth seed Diego Schwartzman and 11th seed Lorenzo Sonego.
Manchester United endured one of their worst attacking displays in recent Premier League history against Liverpool on Tuesday.
The Red Devils failed to register a single shot on target in the opening 45 minutes at Anfield. It was the first time in the top flight they had reached half-time without having an attempt on goal since a meeting with Manchester City in April 2018.
United had just 24.5% of the possession during the first half and only managed two touches in the opposition box – 23 fewer than Liverpool, who led 2-0 at the interval thanks to goals from Luis Diaz and Mohamed Salah.
Ralf Rangnick's side completed 92 passes – more than 300 fewer than Liverpool – and only seven of them came in Liverpool's final third.
United have now conceded more Premier League goals against Liverpool (74) than they have versus any other opponent in the competition.
Paul Pogba hobbled off injured in the first half of Manchester United's Premier League meeting with Liverpool on Tuesday.
World Cup-winning midfielder Pogba was replaced by Jesse Lingard in the 10th minute with United trailing 1-0 at Anfield.
The France international could be seen limping when he attempted to track back as Luis Diaz opened the scoring inside five minutes.
Pogba had retained his place in the starting line-up despite being jeered by fans in the 3-2 win over Norwich City at Old Trafford at the weekend.
He could now be a doubt for crucial fixtures against Arsenal and Chelsea in the next nine days.
The whole of Manchester United is behind Cristiano Ronaldo following the death of his baby son, says interim boss Ralf Rangnick.
Ronaldo confirmed in a social media post on Monday that his baby son had passed away.
He and his partner Georgina Rodriguez had been expecting twins. Their newborn daughter survived.
Ronaldo was absent from United's Premier League meeting with Liverpool on Tuesday and Rangnick sent a message of support to the Portugal captain's family.
"This is the worst thing that can happen. I'm the father of two sons myself, so I'm fully aware what that means," Rangnick told Sky Sports.
"We're all behind him. We're all with him. We wish that him and his family are strong together."
He added to the club's official media team: "It shows there are more important things in life than football. The whole club is with him. For me, it was clear that he was to be where he is now – with his family."
United and Liverpool fans came together and applauded when the clock showed seven minutes in a show of support for Ronaldo.
Kyrie Irving has been fined $50,000 by the NBA after appearing to raise his middle finger to fans on two separate occasions during Game 1 of the Brooklyn Nets' playoffs opener against the Boston Celtics.
Irving defended his actions during the Nets' 115-114 loss to the Celtics on Sunday.
The 30-year-old, who played for Boston for two turbulent seasons before a sour exit in 2019, has been regularly booed by fans at the TD Garden, and the ill-feeling has only intensified with each meeting.
Irving scored a game-high 39 points in Sunday's loss, and insisted he was only reciprocating the feedback from the Celtics fans.
"Look, where I'm from, I'm used to all these antics and people being close nearby," Irving said post-game. "It's the same energy, and I'm going to have the same energy for them.
"And it's not every fan. I don't want to attack every fan, every Boston fan, but when people start yelling 'p****' or 'b****' or 'f*** you' and all this stuff, there's only but so much you take as a competitor.
"We're the ones expected to be docile and humble, take a humble approach. F*** that, it's the playoffs. It is what it is."
On Tuesday it was confirmed by the NBA that Irving would be fined for his actions, with a statement released by NBA Communications saying: "Brooklyn Nets guard Kyrie Irving has been fined $50,000 for making obscene gestures on the playing court and directing profane language toward the spectator stands, it was announced today by Byron Spruell, President, League Operations.
"Irving made the gestures and his comments to the spectators during the Nets' 115-114 loss to the Boston Celtics on April 17 at TD Garden."
Game 2 will take place at TD Garden on Wednesday.
Faf du Plessis and Josh Hazlewood powered Royal Challengers Bangalore to their fifth win in seven Indian Premier League games as they eased past Lucknow Super Giants.
The foundation for an 18-run win was laid as Du Plessis came four runs short of a century, his blistering 96 ensuring RCB reached 181-6 despite losing captain Virat Kohli for a duck.
Lucknow got a series of starts, including from skipper KL Rahul (30) and Krunal Pandya (42), but they could not put a match-winning partnership together.
A contributing factor to that failure was the brilliance of Hazlewood, whom RCB bought at this year's auction.
After his excellent performance against Delhi Capitals, Hazlewood provided further vindication of that decision by taking 4-25.
His last scalp, that of Australian compatriot Marcus Stoinis (24), effectively ended any hope Lucknow had of victory, with Jason Holder unable to recover the situation for the Super Giants in the final 10 balls.
RCB are level on 10 points with Gujarat Titans at the top of the table. Gujarat have the edge because of their superior net run rate.
No Faffing about
Having seen the top order crumble around him, with Dusmantha Chameera claiming the wickets of Anuj Rawat and Kohli in successive deliveries in the opening over and Glenn Maxwell departing for 23, Du Plessis took it upon himself to hold the RCB innings together.
He did so by hammering 11 fours and two sixes to record his joint-highest IPL score and his second half-century of the season.
Hazlewood's hot streak
The Super Giants must have known their luck was out when an initially ambitious looking review revealed Rahul had edged a leg-side delivery from Harshal Patel behind to the keeper.
Krunal gave them hope thereafter but eventually fell to Maxwell before Hazlewood removed Ayush Badoni and Stoinis to round off a superb display from the former Chennai Super Kings quick, who now has eight wickets in three games after taking 3-28 against Delhi.
Phil Jones was restored to Manchester United's starting line-up and Paul Pogba retained his place for the Premier League meeting with Liverpool on Tuesday.
Centre-back Jones was handed just a second start of the season – his only other one being in the 1-0 home loss to Wolves on January 3 – as Ralf Rangnick switched to a three-man defence for the clash at Anfield.
Pogba was again named in midfield despite being jeered during the 3-2 win over Norwich City on Saturday, while Nemanja Matic replaced Jesse Lingard.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka returned in place of Alex Telles and Marcus Rashford was given the nod with Cristiano Ronaldo unavailable following the death of his baby son.
There were two changes for Liverpool after their FA Cup semi-final success against Manchester City.
Joel Matip was brought in for Ibrahima Konate to partner Virgil van Dijk in the centre of defence and Jordan Henderson was restored at the expense of Naby Keita.
Roberto Firmino missed out on a place in the matchday squad due to a minor foot injury.
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