It was another failed opportunity by Aston Villa to capitalise on a club's poor form, as they were beaten 2-0 by Liverpool. Their dreadful record at Anfield continues, with the defeat dropping them to 11th.
The Reds on the other hand, will be very pleased that they ended their losing run of four consecutive league matches. A first clean sheet since September 14th and a game that moves them up to 3rd place, a seven point gap to Arsenal at the top.
Liverpool's Performance
There was a tense atmosphere around Anfield when the game kicked off, with Liverpool starting on the back foot. Villa's early chances tested Mamardashvilli in the net, but the Georgian kept them in it. Szoboszlai had a great chance to break the deadlock, when he intercepted Kamara's loose pass, leaving him one-on-one with Martínez, who made a comfortable save.
After the 25 minute mark, they started to grow into the game, applying pressure on Villa's back line as they struggled to play out from the back. A disallowed goal for Etikite, who was rightfully judged to be offside, gave Liverpool a huge boost heading into the final few minutes of the first half.
Then in added time, a gift from Martínez fell straight into the path of Salah, who calmly slotted the ball into an empty net to score his 250th goal for the reigning champions. He now joins an elite club alongside Ian Rush and Roger Hunt. Arne Slot's side took all the momentum into the break.
A milestone strike for Mo 🇪🇬👑 pic.twitter.com/wMoKEsNHEe
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) November 2, 2025
The second half started like the first had ended, with Liverpool on top, controlling possession. Villa's inability to keep a hold of the ball for long, enabled the Reds to keep pushing them back, forcing them deeper into their own half. In the 58th minute, Liverpool doubled their advantage, after Mac Allister played the ball into Gravenberch, who drove forward and had his shot take a wicked deflection of Pau Torres, which completely wrong footed Martínez.
A goalscoring return to the side for Ryan 🎯 pic.twitter.com/QzhJbrnVQ3
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) November 2, 2025
From then on, they were in cruise control, as Villa were unable to create many chances and the game petered out to a close. It wasn't a brilliant performance by Liverpool, but they got the job done and took the three points.
Arne Slot was impressed with the Reds' performance and the 'special' support given to them by Anfield in the 2-0 victory over Aston Villa 👇
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) November 1, 2025
Aston Villa's Performance
For the first 25 minutes, Villa looked bright, with Morgan Rogers making an early impact. He was dropping deep to receive the ball in the space left behind Liverpool's press. An early chance saw him drive forward and play a wonderful pass to Watkins, who laid it back to Rogers, before he struck the far post. Matty Cash also hit the woodwork, when his deflected cross caused Mamardashvilli to tip the ball onto the crossbar, as Villa yet again broke the press.
But as Liverpool grew into the game, Villa began to look vulnerable trying to play out from the back. A calamitous error by Martínez allowed Salah to score the opener just before halftime, dealing a massive blow to the Villans. It was at the worst possible time to make a mistake, as Unai Emery would have been happy going into the break at 0-0 and Anfield was still slightly nervy.
Villa started the second 45 quite passive, unable to impose themselves and put Liverpool under any threat. Their problems continued, when Pau Torres' misplaced pass out from the back led to Gravenberch's goal, which signalled the end of any comeback by Villa.
Barkley, Sancho and Maatsen came on and sparked some intensity and creativity. The former Evertonian had a couple of chances to get back in it, but failed to test Mamardashvilli. The result ended Villa's run of four successive league wins.
Although Emery will be disappointed with the result, taking six out of nine points from a tricky run of fixtures in Tottenham, Manchester City and Liverpool is a big positive in a 38 game season.
Unai’s thoughts after tonight’s result. pic.twitter.com/8CzWeamuAH
— Aston Villa (@AVFCOfficial) November 1, 2025
Looking Ahead
Both teams return to their respective European campaigns this week. Liverpool host Spanish giants Real Madrid in the Champions League, whilst Aston Villa welcome Maccabi Tel Aviv to Villa Park in the Europa League, as they both look to bounce back after their defeats in their previous matches.
