Richarlison scored a late equalizer to give Tottenham Hotspur a deserved draw at Liverpool as under-pressure interim coach Igor Tudor secured his first point.
Spurs seemed destined to suffer their seventh straight loss in all competitions—their fifth under Tudor—when Liverpool took the lead in the 18th minute through Dominik Szoboszlai’s free kick.
Richarlison had been a continuous threat, forcing Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson to make numerous saves before scoring in the 90th minute off Randal Kolo Muani’s feed.
It was a devastating blow to Liverpool, who appeared to be returning to the top four, but a major boost for Spurs, who showed incredible resilience to finally arrest the rot, especially following their midweek Champions League defeat at Atlético Madrid.
Liverpool’s head coach Arne Slot explained why he dropped Mohamed Salah to the bench and gave 17-year-old Rio Ngumoha his Premier League debut.
Spurs, without 13 players due to injury or suspension, started well but were undone by another goalkeeping blunder.
Guglielmo Vicario, who started instead of Antonin Kinsky after a nightmare in the big loss in Spain, had his positioning completely wrong for Szoboszlai’s free-kick, failing to keep it out despite getting a good touch on it.
Liverpool came close to increasing their advantage before halftime, with Vicario saving Cody Gakpo’s attempt off the post.
But Richarlison led the Spurs line with tremendous courage, heading narrowly wide and forcing two crucial saves from Alisson either side of the break before finally hitting the back of the net in front of a bewildered crowd.
Liverpool play Galatasaray in the second leg of their Champions League last-16 tie on Wednesday (20:00 GMT kick-off) and then travel to face Brighton in Saturday’s early Premier League kick-off (12:30 GMT).
Spurs are also in Champions League action, hosting Atletico Madrid at home on Wednesday (20:00 GMT) and then hosting Nottingham Forest in the Premier League on Sunday, 22 March (14:15 GMT).
