Five things spotted as VAR and key absences cost Liverpool and Jürgen Klopp at Tottenham

A furious Liverpool were left reeling with the match officials at the Tottenham Stadium as the Reds dropped two points against Antonio Conte's Spurs.

Refereeing decisions were the talk of the game with both sides left fuming at different points in the clash in an enthralling encounter in North London.

With Man City having comfortably beaten Newcastle United earlier in the day and Chelsea having been held by a resolute Wolves team, the pressure was on the Reds to get three points in this one, despite the absences of key men.

But having won each of the last seven matches against Spurs, Liverpool were all over the place defensively at times in the first half — with Jürgen Klopp's set-up incredibly risky and open.

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Harry Kane and Son Heung-min were left two-versus-two with Ibrahima Konaté and Joël Matip on numerous occasions, and were the pair sharper and more in form, they would have had even more of a field day.

Here are the five things Liverpool.com spotted as the game unfolded.

VAR all over the place

How Harry Kane escaped a red card for a forceful challenge on Andy Robertson was one thing, but how Chris Cavanagh failed to award a penalty kick for a blatant push on Diogo Jota inside the penalty area is another entirely.

Then came the tackle that saw Robertson sent off in the second half: one that was nowhere near as bad as Kane's but one that had a completely different outcome.

Klopp looked ready to combust on the touchline and no wonder.

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Liverpool were not just battling Tottenham with several players missing; they were also battling the officials for the second weekend running.

This time, though, they didn't come out on top.

Baptism of fire

Tyler Morton was just 10 days old when James Milner made his Premier League for Leeds United.

On his first Premier League start, and just his second appearance in the top flight, it was breathless in the midfield.

At times he looked exposed and uncomfortable but this was no fault of his own; purely of the system in which he was being played where his fellow midfielders left him alone.

On the ball, he was typically very good, spraying passes left and right whenever he could.

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Key absences felt

Virgil van Dijk, Jordan Henderson, Thiago Alcântara, Fabinho. Those four players, right down the Liverpool spine, were removed for this game thanks to Covid tests and illness.

There can be little doubt that the midfield looked incredibly light, with Tyler Morton at the base given next to nothing in the way of protection from James Milner and Naby Keïta.

Morton did well to cope as well as he did in the circumstances, and lasted an hour before being replaced by Roberto Firmino.

Alisson Becker heroics

One year to the day since Liverpool beat Crystal Palace 7-0, it looked like it would be Spurs netting a hat full on this occasion, only for Alisson to be the hero on numerous occasions.

The save from Kane when the Liverpool defence was found wanting was just one of many. Kane, in a more prolific campaign, could have scored seven on his own.

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Alisson should have done better when Son did score the equaliser, but he had saved several goals from being scored by the hosts until that point, and should cut himself some slack that being the case.

Mohamed Salah quiet

Liverpool had most of the possession but seemed unable to funnel it out to Salah on the right-hand side, giving it more to the lively Sadio Mané on the left.

With half an hour remaining, he moved centrally with Firmino to have a go there, but things did not get that much easier for him.

Tottenham thought he had handled the ball when Andy Robertson put Liverpool ahead, but that fleeting moment was a rare time he looked to trouble Hugo Lloris.

It was the rarest of things: an off day.

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