Every misstep, even the smallest one, is the title potentially lost, so the fact that Liverpool had entered the final 10 minutes here apparently unable to take their chance to return to the top of the table was huge.
Time was, a point at Southampton would have seemed a decent result but that time isn’t now. Tottenham and Arsenal have lost here, Manchester United only drew. But Manchester City won, and that is the standard. A draw would have left Liverpool second on goal difference, City with a game in hand. So what might have seemed a minor slip had potentially major consequence. And then, from nowhere, came Salah.
He had played a good game, but not a great one, and had been handled well by Southampton’s back line, but this is why Jurgen Klopp keeps faith with him even after a barren run of eight matches. Salah makes stuff happen, makes goals happen — maybe makes titles happen, too.
On this occasion, he picked up a headed clearance by Jordan Henderson inside his own half, south of the centre circle, turned and sped on goal. For once, Southampton could not get a man near him.
Salah had time to think of the significance of the moment, time to mentally stumble, time to consider the consequences of failure. Yet he finished as if not a negative consideration had entered his mind, ripped his shirt off in celebration and took his booking without a flicker of remorse.
And Liverpool were not finished. The deadlock broken, their swagger returned. With four minutes remaining, Alisson played the ball to the magnificent Virgil van Dijk who picked out Roberto Firmino on the right flank.
He hit a low cross and there was Henderson, channelling the spirit of vintage age Frank Lampard, a furious run into the six-yard box to confirm the victory. It was his first goal since September 23, 2017. He celebrated like it, too, and so he should. His arrival as a second-half substitute went a long way to changing the game.
Fittingly, for a fixture that was seen as something of a googly, a party from Liverpool spent some of Friday at the Ageas Bowl for the opening fixture of the County Championship season between Hampshire and Essex.
Well, you know what these Germans, Egyptians and Brazilians are like for their cricket. Maybe the plan was to relieve a little tension. If so, it was only a partial success. There really can be no way of forgetting the circumstances around these matches now, meaning Liverpool began nervously and had to grow into the game, before winning it. But no distraction is going to erase the magnitude of this run-in, not even 94 not out from Sam Northeast.The Hampshire batsman was once part of a very fractious move from Kent, but probably not quite the maelstrom that preceded van Dijk’s switch from Southampton to Liverpool. His every touch here was booed by the locals — still seething at his behaviour in forcing the move — although largely it only went to show how often he is involved in Liverpool’s build-up play.
Van Dijk is so much more than just a stopper, even if it is his defensive performances that makes him a strong contender for Footballer of the Year.
This was another 90 minutes that displayed his credentials, crammed with vital blocks, clearances and interceptions. That is Van Dijk’s craft, his composure on the ball is what elevates him to the level of modern era greats like Rio Ferdinand. Even when Liverpool wobble, the sight of Van Dijk in the middle assures. This fixture is always going to be hard for Southampton, looking at the quality of the players they have lost to Friday's opponents.
Will Shane Long be next? There is certainly a pattern here.
Going into this game, of the last eight Southampton players to score against Liverpool, five then ended up at Anfield. Peter Crouch, Rickie Lambert, Dejan Lovren, Nathaniel Clyne and, most recently, Sadio Mane.
Long took his goal well, but was helped by some unusually calamitous marking. Soon after, he had a very good chance with less time to size up the target and it is fair to say normal service was resumed.Southampton had already signalled their intent after just five minutes. Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg broke up play in midfield before feeding the ball to Nathan Redmond. He brought in Ryan Bertrand on the left-side overlap but his dangerous cross was cut out by Van Dijk at the near post.
The same route to goal brought the opener, but this time Van Dijk was inexplicably absent — like most of Liverpool’s defence.
It was Bertrand again, causing Trent Alexander-Arnold heaps of trouble down his flank, who crossed for Hojbjerg to get a neat headed flick, taking a gathering of violet shirts out of the game as he did. It left Long, ball at his feet, goal at his mercy, Alisson powerless as he smashed one into the left corner of the net.
Long should have put Southampton two clear in the 19th minute but he missed his kick and Van Dijk was relieved to put the ball over for a corner.
This was another huge half for Liverpool, after the second 45 minutes against Tottenham at Anfield on Sunday, and had they not got back into the game before the break, who knows the psychological impact? It was a slow burn of a fightback but, with 16 minutes gone, they forced their first real chance when a Salah chip found Mane, whose header was pushed out by Angus Gunn.Finally, Liverpool’s pressure told. A succession of crosses were repelled, before Alexander-Arnold recycled one with purpose. It was met by Naby Keita at the far post and Gunn’s best efforts could not claw it back from over the line.
Replays showed Salah offside in the build-up but there must have been at least three phases of play between that call and the goal. How far are we going to wind back with VAR next season?
We could be sitting around all night if events in the ball park of the action have to be taken into consideration. Southampton had plenty of opportunity to clear between the infringement and the equaliser.
Liverpool did not get lucky. No team topping the league in this, of all title races, is lucky.