Liverpool came from behind to beat Bournemouth as a 2-1 victory at Anfield moved them to within three wins of the Premier League title
Liverpool's bid to arrest a run of three defeats in four matches got off to the worst possible start as Callum Wilson's contentious ninth-minute opener - allowed to stand after VAR ruled the Bournemouth striker's shove on Joe Gomez was legal - left Anfield stunned
But Liverpool produced the response of would-be champions as Mohamed Salah, on his 100th Premier League appearance, and Sadio Mane punished costly Bournemouth defensive errors to turn the game around in the space of eight minutes before half-time
A stunning goal-line clearance from captain James Milner and a late offside flag prevented Ryan Fraser and Wilson from rescuing a priceless point for the Cherries' survival bid
But Liverpool avoided paying the price for a lethargic second-half performance as they held on for a record-breaking 22nd consecutive top-flight home victory that moves them 25 points clear at the top of table and to within nine points of the title
Liverpool started brightly in their bid to bounce back from defeats to Atletico Madrid, Watford and Chelsea but found themselves behind inside 10 minutes
Wilson's clear push on Gomez went unpunished by on-field referee Paul Tierney and, after Wilson applied the finishing touch to Jefferson Lerma's cross at the end of a slick Bournemouth attack, VAR found no clear and obvious error, to Jurgen Klopp's amazement
Bournemouth smelt blood and pushed for a second, with Nathan Ake's towering header tipped onto the Liverpool bar by stand-in goalkeeper Adrian, but an injury to Cherries captain Steve Cook swung the momentum in the hosts' favour
Cook's replacement, Jack Simpson, was caught on the ball by Mane - a costly error which was punished by Salah - who gathered a poor square pass before beating Aaron Ramsdale at his near post
Liverpool found their groove and one quickly became two as Virgil van Dijk's long pass released Mane through on goal, and the Senegal international slotted his 18th goal of the season
 They could have had a third before the break when Milner volleyed straight at Ramsdale
Milner, captain in Jordan Henderson's continued absence, prevented Fraser from drawing Bournemouth level with a lob over Adrian at the start of a second period in which Liverpool failed to get going
Mane rattled the angle of post and bar with a stunning curled shot and Roberto Firmino spurned a glorious late chance to end his Anfield goal drought, but those proved immaterial as the Reds marched on towards their first top-flight crown in three decades
Liverpool needed their inspirational forward to be at his very best in order to see off Bournemouth's sturdy challenge at Anfield on Saturday lunchtime
Having fallen behind early on, the home team were after a response, and quick, and that is exactly what Mane provided them after creating Liverpool's equaliser having dispossessed Jack Simpson deep inside Bournemouth's half, before finding Salah
And the Senegal international was on hand to latch on to Van Dijk's through ball and find the bottom righthand corner of the net eight minutes later for his 18th goal in all competitions this season, 14 of which have come in the league
Jurgen Klopp hit out at VAR after the result - but admitted he regretted celebrating in front of assistant referee Dan Cook when Salah's equaliser went in
"I was in good spirits, let me say it like this," he said
 "Yes, that happened (the celebration)
 Would I do it now? No, but in the moment I just don't understand how it could be a goal
"This shows the problem of VAR still exists
 It is a human being
 I am not sure, does anyone in the room think it was not a foul?"The touch was enough to let Joe struggle, they score a goal in the next situations
 How is it possible someone sits there and doesn't see it?"Mike Dean (fourth official) I am sure saw it is a foul but it is not his job any more
 VAR hides behind the phrase 'clear and obvious'
"Liverpool boss : I was absolutely happy about the result, the three points and theperformance because I knew it would be tricky for different reasons
 I think the decisions of the ref around the goals made it even more tricky for us, obviously
 We wanted to fight back before the game and after that we had to fight back
 How we played after being 1-0 down was exceptional, to be honest
 The boys' reaction today, I loved - I really loved
"Bournemouth boss : "I thought we performed really well
 I can't be critical of too much of what we did
 We knew we would have limited possession
 It was a case of how well we defended
 I thought our defensive shape was really good
 What cost us the game was two moments in our half where we turned the ball over too easily
"Liverpool host Atletico Madrid in the Champions League on Wednesday at 8pm before travelling to Goodison Park for the Merseyside derby against Everton on at 8pm - live on 
 Bournemouth host Crystal Palace on Saturday at 3pm
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