Liverpool's Roberto Firmino, centre right, scores their side's seventh goal of the game during the English Premier League match between Liverpool and Bournemouth at Anfield stadium in Liverpool, England, Saturday Aug. 27, 2022.The Canadian Press
Liverpool equaled the biggest win in English Premier League history after a 9-0 hammering of promoted Bournemouth on Saturday.
Jurgen Klopp’s side started the campaign slowly, with surprise draws against Fulham and Crystal Palace compounded by Monday’s loss at rival Manchester United. But Liverpool’s fearsome attack looked back to its best at Anfield as the team recorded its first league win and Roberto Firmino and Luis Diaz both grabbed two goals.
It’s only the fifth time a team scored nine goals in the Premier League, with Man United (twice) and Leicester the only previous teams to win 9-0. Liverpool also won 9-0 over Crystal Palace in 1989, before the top-flight changed its name.
“We scored some wonderful goals from all areas and didn’t stop,” Klopp said. “It was 5-0 at halftime. How often does it happen that a team take their foot off the gas? We just wanted to have a 100% satisfying experience we can use going from here.”
Firmino, starting in place of suspended summer signing Darwin Nunez, produced a stunning first-half display, which began with Diaz heading home his clipped cross within three minutes of the kickoff.
Firmino then provided the assist for Harvey Elliott’s first league goal — a fizzing strike from distance that would have been goal of the day were it not for the Trent Alexander-Arnold stunner that followed.
The Brazil forward set up that goal and celebrated one of his own soon after when turning in a deflected cross — his first league goal at Anfield since December 2020.
Virgil van Dijk powered home Liverpool’s fifth on the stroke of halftime, while the onslaught continued just after the break in the form of Chris Mepham’s own-goal.
Firmino grabbed a second of the afternoon before leaving to a standing ovation.
The goals did not stop there, though, as Fabio Carvalho scored his first for the club and Diaz grabbed his second.