Danny Welbeck scored twice as Brighton beat Liverpool 2-1 on Saturday to deal a major blow to the Reds’ push for a Champions League spot next season.
Arne Slot’s men came into the match on the sunny south coast in buoyant mood after hammering Galatasaray 4-0 in midweek to reach the Champions League quarter-finals.
But a goal in each half from the evergreen Welbeck gave the home team a fourth win in five Premier League matches, keeping alive their own hopes of European football next season.
Liverpool were missing both goalkeeper Alisson Becker and forward Mohamed Salah at the Amex Stadium.
And they suffered a further injury blow early in the game when topscorer Hugo Ekitike hobbled off with an apparent dead leg after a firm challenge from former Liverpool stalwart James Milner.
The champions found themselves behind when Welbeck scored his 11th Premier League goal of the season in the 14th minute, nodding home from close range after Diego Gomez headed a cross-field pass back across goal.
That made the 35-year-old former Manchester United and Arsenal forward the top English goalscorer in the league this season.
Liverpool found some rhythm after falling behind and Alexis Mac Allister went close to an equaliser in the 22nd minute but Brighton goalkeeper Bart Verbruggen got down smartly low to his left to claw the ball away.
However, the visitors were level in the 30th minute after some clever opportunism from left-back Milos Kerkez, capitalising on an error from Brighton captain Lewis Dunk, who paid the price for heading a high ball back to his goalkeeper without looking behind him.
Hungary defender Kerkez nipped in and produced a composed finish, flicking the ball over the stranded Verbruggen.
