In round 5 of the 2024/25 Premier League, Liverpool, with home field advantage, easily crushed Bournemouth 3-0 to temporarily take the top spot from Man City thanks to a better goal difference.

Welcoming Bournemouth, Liverpool took to the field with their familiar 4-2-3-1 formation. Notably, striker Darwin Nunez was assigned to start for the first time this season by head coach Arne Slot, replacing Diogo Jota. Meanwhile, new signing Federico Chiesa continued to be on the bench.

In the 3rd minute, Liverpool’s net shook after a close-range shot by striker Antoine Semenyo. However, fortunately for The Reds, VAR determined that the Bournemouth player was offside, so the goal was not recognized.

Having escaped defeat, Liverpool pressed forward and the stage then belonged to Kepa. The former Chelsea goalkeeper continuously made excellent saves for Bournemouth after shots from Luis Diaz and Mo Salah. However, when even Kepa made mistakes, Bournemouth began to collapse.

In the 26th minute, center-back Ibrahima Konate passed a long pass from home and Diaz broke the offside trap and rushed down. Kepa rushed out but misjudged and was passed by Diaz before the Liverpool striker finished into the empty goal to open the scoring.

Just 2 minutes later, Diaz completed his double with a decisive shot in the box from a pass from Trent Alexander-Arnold. In the 37th minute, Liverpool had a third goal and it came from a classy left-footed shot from Nunez in the penalty area. Before that, Nunez and Salah had a great combination to escape the pressing.

In the second half, Liverpool continued to push up their formation in search of a goal, but the pace was not as fast as in the first 45 minutes. Salah and Nunez were the ones who had Liverpool’s best chances, but luck did not smile on them.

In the 72nd minute, coach Slot sent Chiesa onto the field, marking the Italian international’s debut for Liverpool in the Premier League. As soon as he appeared, Chiesa had a powerful shot from outside the box that found Kepa.

In the remaining time, both Liverpool and Bournemouth had chances but neither side could score. In the end, Liverpool defeated Bournemouth 3-0 to temporarily take the top spot from Man City thanks to a better goal difference (+9 vs +8, both have 12 points, but Man City played 1 less match).

In round 6, Liverpool will visit Wolves.