Watford Vs Liverpool as the Premier League returns after a two-week break – Live Update

Liverpool have five, and Roberto Firmino has his hat trick! Neco Williams is found on the right hand side, he beats his man with some lovely skill and fires across goal for the Brazilian, who once again has the simple task of tapping into an empty net.

88 mins: Ngakia sends a wicked ball into the Liverpool box. Sarr doesn’t make great contact with it but it falls to Hernandez at the back post, where a bit of pinball sees Van Dijk get a boot to it and clear.

86 mins: Watford come again through Sarr, who lifts the ball towards the backpost but Williams just gets a touch on the ball ahead of Hernandez. The forward comes again but Keita throws his body in front of the ball to block his effort.

84 mins: Chance Watford! Sarr rattles Kelleher’s near post with a powerful strike! Replays show that the youngster got a fingertip on that, brilliant save from the stand-in keeper who has had very little to do today.

83 mins: Final change for Liverpool as Neco Williams replaces Milner.

81 mins: Mane rises highest to meet a Milner cross from the right flank, but his header lacks the power to test Foster.

Pedro is released over the top and tries to chip Kelleher but he overhits it before the flag goes up for offside.

79 mins: Watford offering more energy at 4-0 down than they have all game. Sarr looks to take on Milner but the veteran stands up to the youngster and prods the ball behind for a corner.

The set piece is only cleared as far as Sarr who blasts the ball over.

74 mins: Chance Watford! Sissoko bursts forward and breaks Liverpool’s midfield line, he tees up Hernandes but his shot doesn’t have quite enough curl on it to creep into the far post. That’s the closest Watford have come to scoring today.

71 mins: Chance Liverpool! And what a miss from Mane. Rose makes a terrible error to lose possession of the ball. Firmino streaks down the right, bends a wonderful ball towards Mane on the backpost but he miscues his shot wide of goal. Really should have scored there.

70 mins: Ranieri makes his final change as Pedro replaces Denis.

69 mins: Milner lines up a shot on goal but it is blocked by Cathcart, who is still surely computing the fact he will be on highlight reels for years to come after that Salah goal.

Keita follows up and blazes his shot over the bar.

67 mins: Watford go close to getting a consolation after some pinball in the Liverpool penalty area, but the flag eventually goes up for offside.

64 mins: Double change for the visitors. Alexander-Arnold and Robertson are replaced by Oxlade-Chamberlain and Tsimikas respectively.

For Watford, Ngakia had replaced Kiko earlier.

63 mins: Alexander-Arnold almost makes it five! His shot hits Danny Rose and the deflection almost takes it beyond Foster and into the back of the net, but it just drifts wide. The Englishman’s corner comes to nothing.

61 mins: Mane wants to get in on the act again as the ball sits up kindly for him on the edge of the box, but he balloons it over the crossbar.

57 mins: Ironic jeers from the Watford masses as Cleverley takes an audacious shot from range that does not trouble Kelleher – who has had literally nothing to do up until this point.

It’s 4-0!! Watford fail to clear their lines and it falls to Mo Salah. He wriggles free of a couple of tame challenges, sends Cathcart to the shop for some milk and bends the ball into the far corner leaving Foster with no chance.

That one may well be better than his stunner against City, a goal of the season contender for sure – he is in the form of his life!

Liverpool have a third and that’s surely game over! Robertson attempts to play Salah in behind, Cathcart looks to cut out the ball but he directs it straight at goal. Foster parries it right into the path of Roberto Firmino who sticks the ball into an empty net.

50 mins: Chance Liverpool! The visitors knock the ball from side to side until Salah picks up the ball, he is allowed to turn and face his man and attempts to find the top corner with his left foot but Foster is equal to it and tips behind.

Alexander-Arnold’s resulting corner is aimed straight at the keeper.

47 mins: Salah has time to control and turn on the edge of the Watford box, he looks for Milner but his delicate, lofted ball is cleared.

46 mins: Liverpool attack straightaway and Alexander-Arnold advances forward, unleashing from range but he drags his shot wide.

The second half is up and running and Ranieri has made a change at the break, with Tom Cleverley replacing Masina after a torrid 45 minutes.

The visitors are 45 minutes away from going top of the Premier League.

Murmured boos as Jon Moss blows his whistle for half time. In terms of performance, that’s as bad as it gets for Ranieri on his return to the Premier League.

Liverpool ought to be further in front at Vicarage Road, with Salah and Mane running riot in those opening 45 minutes. Plenty for the Italian to sort at the break.

45+1 min: Just the one minute has been added on to this first half at Vicarage Road as Matip receives treatment with what looks like an eye injury.

44 mins: Firmino blocks a Masina clearance and advances towards the penalty box, but he is rescued by a team-mate who prods the ball behind for a corner. Matip meets Alexander-Arnold’s delivery but Watford clear.

43 mins: Liverpool waste the corner but come forward again through Mane, who looks for a one-two with Robertson but his initial pass is off target.

42 mins: Chance Liverpool! Keita is afforded so much space on the edge of the Watford box, he takes a touch and fires from range, his strike taking a deflection before hitting the bar and going behind for a corner.

40 mins: Sarr has been Watford’s only bright spark this half and he does well to win a free kick in Liverpool’s half after wriggling past Henderson.

Liverpool have doubled their lead and it’s just what they deserve!

Milner starts the move, exchanges a one-two with Mane who releases him down the left. The veteran unselfishly squares the ball for Roberto Firmino who is tasked with tapping the ball into an empty net.

Very comfortable indeed for the visitors.

35 mins: Rose is back on his feet and fit to continue, as a neat backheel from Mane lets Robertson free on the left. His drilled cross is aimed at Salah but once again Sissoko is there to read the danger and clear.

34 mins: Denis tries to launch a counter attack for Watford but his pass fails to find Sarr. Salah comes at Rose again but Sissoko is across to help his former Spurs team-mate out.

Rose is now down injured, it’s been a tough half for the former England international.

30 mins: Mane skips past his man with ease but his cutback for Keita just falls short of his man. The midfielder keeps hustling and wins his team a corner, which comes to nothing.

27 mins: Chance Watford! Mane loses possession in midfield and Sarr pounces, he advances forward and slots Cucho Hernandez in, but Alexander-Arnold is back superbly to take the sting out of his shot and Kelleher saves with ease.

24 mins: Watford with their first foray forwards through Ismaila Sarr, but the flag goes up against the attacker and Liverpool take control of possession again.

20 mins: Chance Liverpool! Salah is released into the Watford box by Alexander-Arnold but his first touch is not quite right and allows Foster to dart out to snuff out the danger. Uncharacteristic error from Salah there.

17 mins: Keita looks to slip Firmino in but Danny Rose gets a toe to the ball to deny the Brazilian an opportunity at goal.

16 mins: Chance Liverpool! Mane hooks the ball into the box, James Milner fails to meet it but Salah is there to strike but Watford get a body in front of the ball to protect Foster’s goal.

12 mins: Chance Liverpool! Salah really fancies this. He picks up the ball on the edge of the penalty area, takes a touch and arrows it towards the top corner but Ben Foster does brilliantly to tip behind for a corner, which comes to nothing.

Liverpool lead! And it is all thanks to the brilliance of Mo Salah.

The Egyptian gets the better of Rose once again, rolling his man to earn himself the freedom of the right hand side. He gets his head up and with the outside of his left boot he curls a pass beyond Watford’s defence for Sadio Mane.

The Senegalese makes no mistake in sweeping past Ben Foster. It had been coming.

8 mins: Firmino tries to link up with Andy Robertson, but the Brazilian’s pass is too strong and runs behind for a goal kick.

5 mins: All Liverpool after five minutes, with Watford unable to escape their own half. They just need to dig in and see out this fast start.

4 mins: Salah gets the better of Rose again but Sissoko is across to knock the ball behind for a corner. Again, Alexander-Arnold’s corner is cleared.

3 mins: Salah at it again. He is picked out by Van Dijk and gets a free run at Danny Rose. He cuts onto his left foot but the Englishman blocks Salah’s shot and it goes behind for a corner.

Alexander-Arnold’s corner is too high for Matip and Watford clear.

1 min: Chance Liverpool! Mo Salah crashes the ball into the crossbar but the linesman’s flag is up for offside against Mane in the build up.

The players kneel in support of football’s anti-racism message and Sadio Mane gets us under way at Vicarage Road.

All 22 players are out on the Vicarage Road turf and Claudio Ranieri has greeted Jurgen Klopp with a warm embrace – it is good to have the Italian back in the Premier League.

Kick off is now moments away!

Just ten minutes to go until kick off at Vicarage Road, can Liverpool keep up their unbeaten run this afternoon?

They won’t be helped by a number of absences, including Brazilian duo Alisson and Fabinho.

Klopp has just engaged in a little verbal sparring match with old foe Des Kelly regarding BT Sport’s decision to allocate this game to a 12.30 kick off, reminiscent of their joust last season at Brighton.

On if his Brazilian players were not playing due to covid protocols:

Jurgen Klopp: ‘No, because we play at 12.30pm there was no chance they would play. If we would have played tonight they would be here and we would give it a try but we play at 12.30pm and there was no chance.’

On being told Watford had turned down a request to get the game moved after Liverpool applied for KO time change

‘I think the broadcasters… whose idea was it to bring us here at 12.30pm, was it Watford’s? If you would not have put us here we wouldn’t have to apply to get it changed, right? Thank you very much for your help. Really, thank you very much.’

Live updates to come shortly!

Liverpool can leapfrog Chelsea into top spot with a win this afternoon, ahead of the Blues’ fixture against Brentford.

Meanwhile, a first Watford win for Ranieri sees the Hornets open up a seven-point gap to Burnley, who occupy 18th position and the final relegation space.

Liverpool’s Brazilian pair Alisson Becker and Fabinho are unavailable today as they are quarantining in Spain following their international commitments over the last fortnight.

It means that young goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher is brought back into the fold. The 22-year-old impressed when called upon last season, keeping five clean sheets in 11 outings for Klopp’s side.

He will be hoping for more of the same at Vicarage Road today.

Jurgen Klopp joined the chorus of concern over Saudi Arabia’s human rights record following the recent takeover of Newcastle, questioning why English football ‘rightly’ rejected a European Super League only to give the green light to a new ‘super team’.

The Liverpool boss even joked that Newcastle’s new owners, the Saudi Public Investment Fund, would be able to to purchase the whole Premier League.

Click below to read more.

Three goals in 20 minutes shattered Liverpool’s invincible dream 20 months ago, and more pertinently, provided their rivals the blueprint to get at their imperious defence.

Klopp will hope to banish that nightmare today, although Ranieri holds a good home record against the Reds.

Click below to read more.

Claudio Ranieri has named his first XI as Watford boss, making five changes from Xisco’s final line up at Elland Road two weeks ago.

Meanwhile Diogo Jota has been replaced by Roberto Firmino up front, Caoimhin Kelleher comes in for Alisson Becker, Naby Keita replaces the injured Curtis Jones and Trent Alexander-Arnold is back after being sidelined with an injury.

Hello and welcome to Sportsmail’s live coverage of today’s lunchtime Premier League kick off between Watford and Liverpool.

Vicarage Road has not been a happy hunting ground for the Reds, who were thumped 3-0 last time they visited Hertfordshire, with Ismaila Sarr and Troy Deeney running riot to shatter Jurgen Klopp’s invincible dream.

Plenty has changed for the Hornets since then, with Claudio Ranieri taking over after the club sacked Xisco Munoz. Today will be the Italian’s first game in charge.

Stay tuned as we build up towards the 12.30pm kick off, with team news to come in the next 10 minutes or so.