Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp warmly embraced Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino upon the Argentine’s return to the touchline at Stamford Bridge last weekend, before attempting to subject his Blues counterpart to a harsher welcome back to life in the Premier League during their headline opener.
A rapid start from the Reds was rewarded when Mohamed Salah’s perfectly-weighted pass found Luis Diaz to slot home the opener, but Chelsea debutant Axel Disasi capitalised on a piece of stagnant defending by Klopp’s team to draw his side level before the half-time whistle.
Failing to continue his stellar streak of scoring in every Premier League opening-day fixture since 2017, Salah cut a furious figure as he was taken off in the second half, but a Liverpool side who had just 35% of the ball in West London still travelled back to base with a respectable point.
The absence of a number six was apparent in Klopp’s attack-minded Liverpool side, as last weekend’s opponents Chelsea hijacked the Reds’ proposed deals for Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia, although a surprise move for Stuttgart’s Wataru Endo could soon be finalised.
A 1-1 draw was also the scoreline during Liverpool’s final home match of the 2022-23 Premier League season, as Aston Villa crushed their Champions League dream, but the hosts are now unbeaten in 12 top-flight contests at Anfield, where Andoni Iraola will face a true test of his managerial mettle.
The newly-hired Cherries boss oversaw a loss-win-loss-win sequence of pre-season results, and his team got off on the wrong foot during the visit of Europa Conference League winners West Ham United, who drew first blood last weekend through Jarrod Bowen.
However, ex-Liverpool striker Dominic Solanke restored parity for Bournemouth eight minutes before the end, as Iraola ended the four-game Premier League losing streak that tarnished the end of the Cherries’ 2022-23 season under his predecessor Gary O’Neil.
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Iraola admitted to being “critical” with his team during the half-time interval – lamenting his players for being too “slow” – but he was left satisfied with their more direct approach in the second half, and his side ended the match with 63% possession to their name.
Solanke’s effort also ended a three-game streak without a Premier League goal for the Cherries, who won three of their final five away games last term – including that thrilling 3-2 triumph at Tottenham Hotspur – but few will need reminding of how their trip to Anfield panned out last season.
Indeed, Liverpool equalled the Premier League’s biggest-ever win with a 9-0 demolition job 12 months ago, but Bournemouth avenged that embarrassment with a 1-0 triumph at the Vitality Stadium only a few months later, and the second half of the redemption mission awaits Iraola on Saturday.
