2021 is coming to an end, yesterday's Premier League was the last game of the year for many teams, and Liverpool, who have played well throughout the year, want to draw a happy end to this year in the last game, but they have unexpectedly failed to do so. At the same time, they also missed a good opportunity to chase the record.
Liverpool's opponent last night was Leicester City, who has been in a state of flux this season, and liverpool missed many opportunities against the team coached by former manager Rodgers, including Salah's penalty in the first half, which was also unlucky to hit the crossbar, which was only the first time since 2017 that Salah had conceded a penalty in the league. In the second half, substitute Leicester City striker Lukeman scored the winning goal and eventually took the victory 1-0, allowing Liverpool to end 2021 with a defeat.
The loss wasn't too unexpected for Liverpool, but with their attacking power this year, being kept a clean sheet by their opponents was definitely unexpected. The clean sheet brought Liverpool's league scoring record to 27 consecutive games, and the last time they kept a clean sheet in the league was a 1-0 defeat to Chelsea on March this year. In the 28 games that have been played this season, Liverpool is also the first time that their opponents have kept a clean sheet.
Liverpool were originally the only team in the Premier League to score in every game this season, but after this game, they also failed to challenge the record of all 38 goals in a single season. As a result, Arsenal in 2001-2002 remained the only team in Premier League history to score in every game of the season, winning the title with 26 wins, 9 draws and 3 defeats. Although not as shocking as winning the title unbeaten after two seasons, it is also one of the hard-to-break records in Premier League history.
For Liverpool, the loss not only means that they have no record, but also further widens the point difference between them and the top team Manchester City, who have played 19 league games, and Liverpool have been 6 points behind Manchester City and the same points as Chelsea. Considering that Liverpool and Chelsea will meet in the first round of the Premier League next year, the balance of the title seems to have gradually shifted in favor of defending champions Manchester City.