African Kings See Liverpool Move To 2nd After Beating Newcastle

Liverpool have moved up to second in the
Premier League table courtesy of a comfortable 2-0 win over Newcastle United at Anfield this evening.
Mohamed Salah continued his fine form in front of goal to send Liverpool into half time with the lead, and Sadio Mane added the second after the interval as the Reds cruised to all three points.
The result leaves Liverpool second in the table until at least Monday night when Manchester United take on Crystal Palace, whereas Newcastle remain just two points clear of the relegation zone despite falling to only their second defeat in their last nine league outings.
The first hint of a chance fell the way of Liverpool after only five minutes when Jamaal Lascelles misjudged a cross which fell at the feet of Mane, but his touch allowed Lascelles to recover and make an important challenge.
Liverpool continued to dominate possession, but chances were few and far between against an organised Newcastle defence and it almost took a moment of magic from Salah to break the deadlock when his ambitious first-time volley slammed into the side-netting.
Emre Can sent a looping header wide of the target moments later before Loris Karius was called into action for the first time, making a routine stop to deny a long-range free kick from Newcastle centre-back Florian Lejeune .
It was a rare moment of attacking note for Newcastle in the first half, though, and Liverpool were soon back on the front foot with Dejan Lovren drawing a save from Martin Dubravka before seeing his follow-up effort blocked by
Mikel Merino from point-blank range.
Salah then took too long over his finish shortly before the half-hour mark, but the in-form Egyptian winger learned from that mistake and did apply the finishing touch when he was next presented with a chance, giving Liverpool the lead five minutes before half time.
A loose ball broke to Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in the middle of the park and he immediately drove towards goal before finding Salah, who slid the ball under Dubravka to score for the seventh game in a row.
The goal was also Salah's 32nd of the season in all competitions - as many as Newcastle's entire squad has managed - although the Magpies did almost change that right on the stroke of half time as Karius was seriously tested for the first time.
The Liverpool number one was equal to it, though, producing a stunning one-handed save to keep out a curling Mohamed Diame effort which was destined for the top corner.
The second half began in a familiar pattern, though, and this time it took just 11 minutes after the restart for Liverpool to make another breakthrough when Mane latched on to Roberto Firmino's clever through-ball before sweeping his finish past Dubravka - the hosts' 200th Premier League goal under Jurgen Klopp.
From that point on Liverpool were in cruise control as they saw the game out, with their main scare coming when Isaac Hayden almost made a quick impact off the bench with a header which bounced wide of the target.
However it was comfortable for Liverpool as they eased to a fourth successive win ahead of matches against Porto in the Champions League and Manchester United in the Premier League next week.
Newcastle, meanwhile, will turn their attention to a relegation showdown with Southampton next weekend having seen their wait for an Anfield victory extend to 22 matches, stretching back to April 1994.