Van Dijk takes issue with winner

Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk felt he was impeded in the build-up to Bournemouth‘s winner in the Reds’ dramatic 3-2 defeat at the Vitality Stadium.

Arne Slot’s men saw their 13-game unbeaten run ended as Amine Adli struck in the 95th minute to clinch the points, scrambling home at the second attempt following a long throw after initially being denied by Alisson.

Adli’s decisive strike came after Liverpool had erased a 2-0 Bournemouth lead, which the Cherries built with two goals in the space of seven minutes in the first half, Evanilson’s 26th-minute opener followed up by a fine finish from Alex Jimenez.

Van Dijk, at fault for both of those goals, pulled one back with a header before half-time, and another excellent free-kick from Dominik Szoboszlai restored parity 10 minutes from the end of normal time.

But Bournemouth finished the stronger of the two sides and were rewarded with three points that moved them 10 points clear of the relegation zone.

Van Dijk: I felt I was blocked

Van Dijk, though, indicated Adli’s goal should have been chalked off. The Netherlands international felt he was unfairly blocked as Liverpool failed to deal with James Hill’s long throw, though replays showed he was inadvertently tripped by Curtis Jones as the midfielder tussled with a Bournemouth player.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Van Dijk said: “What I felt on that pitch is that I was blocked, but the referee and VAR didn’t give it. I can stand here and say it shouldn’t have been given, but it was, so it is what it is.”

Van Dijk’s inability to deal with Marcos Senesi’s long ball forward led to Bournemouth’s first goal, before he played Jimenez onside for the second.

Asked about that seven-minute spell, Van Dijk added: “The first goal was a difficult one to judge, the wind was very tricky so it was difficult. To concede that way isn’t an issue but it’s not good.

“To concede two goals in a short period is not good at all. The goal for us at half-time was really important for momentum in the second half.

“In the end, that throw in cost us.”

Time runs out for Liverpool

Adli’s strike proved the last kick of the game, condemning Liverpool to a defeat that means Manchester United, Chelsea and Newcastle United all have the chance to leapfrog them in the race to qualify for next season’s Champions League with victories on Sunday.

Slot felt more time should have been added on at the end of the game, and he made that point to the officials following its conclusion.

“I think first of all we have to look at ourselves,” Slot told Sky Sports.

“It was more open. Both teams were trying to score a goal. They had better opportunities than us in the last 10 minutes, and then, in the end, there was a long throw-in and they scored a goal. 

“For me, four minutes of added time was not enough but in the end that didn’t matter because they scored. Although then we could’ve maybe had two or three minutes, but this game shouldn’t have had four minutes of extra time. There was already a free-kick that took two or three minutes, there was VAR moments, there was substitutions. That’s what I said to them, that four minutes wasn’t enough. 

“We were down to 10 men and then they scored their second and that was the only few minutes bar from the last 10 minutes that we had some problems. But the result was another loss.”