Liverpool 1 Chelsea 1 - Ngumoha's substitution is booed, but will FA Cup finalists take heart?

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Liverpool may have struck the woodwork twice, but the lack of coherence to their attack was troubling with boos, first heard at the substitution of Rio Ngumoha, erupting again at the final whistle. Chelsea could pluck more positives from the draw having ended a run of six successive league defeats. The minutes played by Levi Colwill and substitute Reece James offered promise, but it seemed incongruous that their principal attacking threat was Marc Cucurella. Ryan Gravenberch’s brilliantly curled opener had thrust the home side ahead early on. Virgil van Dijk should have doubled that lead shortly afterwards but, after such a bright start, Liverpool let their grip slip. Chelsea leant on Cucurella down the left and, after a prolonged period where they dominated possession, eventually forced parity. Enzo Fernandez and Wesley Fofana will squabble over who drew them level — the Frenchman swung his right leg at his team-mate’s free kick and appeared to apply the slightest of touches with the ball dribbling in off the far post — but the manner at which the home side parted so obligingly to wave it through will have disturbed Arne Slot. The visitors’ momentum might have been maintained after the interval, but Cole Palmer’s reward was disallowed with Cucurella marginally offside in the buildup. At least that escape served to jolt Liverpool back into life, with Curtis Jones having a headed goal ruled out after Cody Gakpo’s offside and Dominik Szoboszlai forcing Filip Jorgensen into a sharp save, then striking a post. That theme continued with Van Dijk planting a header on to the crossbar. Here, Gregg Evans, Simon Johnson and Thom Harris dissect the key talking points at Anfield. Liverpool supporters greeted the decision to substitute Ngumoha midway through the second half with a chorus of boos as they voiced their frustration at Slot’s decision-making. The 17-year-old had made his third Premier League start of the season and was lively against his former club, particularly in the first half when he was able to get on the ball. Yet, with time running out and the game evenly poised at 1-1, Slot made the decision on 67 minutes to introduce Alexander Isak in place of Ngumoha. The jeers from the stands suggested the supporters preferred an alternative switch — most likely the withdrawal of Gakpo, who was ineffective and had mustered the fewest amount of touches of any player up to that point. Perhaps the change was inevitable given that Ngumoha was only handed a place in the XI because of illness to Florian Wirtz, yet the way he performed when he was in possession generated a level of excitement supporters enjoyed. Ngumoha averages 6.5 dribbles per 90, the highest of any Liverpool player, and every time he attacked he looked dangerous. It was his pass that set up Gravenberch for the opener and he showed close skill and quick feet on a couple of occasions under pressure to keep hold of the ball. Here you can see, early into the contest, how his presence on the ball occupied a group of Chelsea defenders and freed up space for team-mates. All season supporters have been asking to see more of the teenager who was signed from Chelsea in September 2024 for an initial £2.8million ($3.8m) fee set at a tribunal 18 months later. That partly explains why they were so disappointed when he was taken off. There was a lot to like about the way Chelsea approached this, clearly targeting the left flank and makeshift full-back Jones. They took 51.1 per cent of their attacking touches down that side, their second-highest proportion of the season. The general approach was familiar; three at the back, with Malo Gusto pushing on down the right and Moises Caicedo and Andrey Santos offering themselves for the short pass out of defence. That creates a kind of 3-2-5 shape, stretching the opposition backline across the pitch, with Palmer roaming up ahead to find pockets of space in which he can receive the ball. With Colwill restored to the side, Chelsea looked more dangerous building up through the thirds when they wrestled back the initiative after a slow start. He found an incisive line-breaking pass through to Palmer on 19 minutes, who spun smartly and slipped the ball through to Joao Pedro, a clear example of what Chelsea can create when their penetrative passers and elusive off-ball movers link up. But MacFarlane’s side really started to crank up the pressure when they were able to find Cucurella more frequently in advanced areas. The Spaniard was intelligent in his off-ball movement to target the space in-behind Jones with bustling forward runs when he could, but he kept the novice full-back on his toes with frequent darts towards the ball and the odd underlapping run on his inside. As we can see from the pass network below, Cucurella was almost as advanced as Joao Pedro throughout, a constant outlet in a more aggressive attacking role. He almost got the better of Jeremie Frimpong for Chelsea’s disallowed second, as Liverpool moved the Dutchman to right-back in the second half, only to be caught out by a marginal offside after another purposeful run. Given their recent struggles, this was a pleasing attacking performance to which Cucurella was pivotal, even if they just lacked that finishing touch. Liverpool’s vulnerability from set pieces has been well documented, but the goal they conceded today marked a new low. The way the defence inexcusably allowed a ball into the box from Fernandez to trickle unchallenged into the net was as bad as Anfield has seen. It all started with an unnecessary kick into touch from Giorgi Mamardashvili, restored to the side after injury, which immediately put Liverpool under pressure. From the resulting throw-in, Gakpo fouled Fofana and, from there, the embarrassment mounted. After Palmer considered playing a short free kick, Fernandez instead pulled rank and punched the ball into the box. Fofana nudged Gakpo out of the way to free up space and appeared to apply a slight touch as the ball skipped on into the goal. The rest of the defence remained static — Mamardashvili was flat-footed, helpless and could do nothing to keep it out — in what will go down as one of the most disappointing goals to concede of this frustrating season. None of this is a massive surprise for Liverpool, who have now conceded 18 goals from set pieces this season, including in back-to-back games. The regularity at which they concede in this manner may have reduced from earlier in the campaign but, clearly, the issues are still there. It seemed unlikely not so long ago, but there is a genuine possibility Colwill will start for Chelsea against Manchester City in the FA Cup final next week. This was Colwill’s first start for Chelsea’s senior side since the FIFA Club World Cup Final 10 months ago. The England international, who made his comeback as a substitute against Nottingham Forest on Monday, suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury on the first day of pre-season training. Levi starts. 💪#CFC | #LIVCHE pic.twitter.com/h3kVoxFibE — Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) May 9, 2026 Chelsea always hoped he would be able to play again before the end of the campaign, but to be in the first XI at Anfield speaks volumes about his importance to the side as well as the issues the team have been enduring. He could not have wished to face a tamer Liverpool attack in the first half, with Hugo Ekitike and Mohamed Salah unavailable due to injury and Alexander Isak only fit enough to be on the bench. That meant Colwill, 23, only had to worry about Gakpo playing through the middle, plus Szoboszlai pushing forward. Gravenberch’s beautifully taken early curler came from slack Chelsea defending on their right flank, so Colwill was blameless there. His intervention to check Frimpong’s progress into the box summed up his confidence and, as the half wore on, Colwill felt assured enough defensively to push forward. He even attempted a cross from the left wing. Yet there were reminders of fragility. Colwill was left limping for a good five minutes after the interval, clearly feeling some discomfort in his left leg. Much to the visitors’ relief, the defender was able to run it off. It was a good job, too, with Isak entering the fray midway through the second half, though the expensive signing from Newcastle did not fare much better. Colwill’s presence sparked a better display from Fofana — a pairing that had been strong when free from injury last term. Manchester City’s attack, Erling Haaland and all, will surely provide a much tougher test. But at least Colwill has a useful 90 minutes in his legs. The away fans revelled in chanting “Levi, Levi”, making up for lost time. On this evidence, they will have that opportunity again at Wembley next Saturday. Given that Liverpool spent close to £450million in last summer’s transfer window — and a large portion of that on attacking talent — they might not have been expecting to field a 17-year-old and a converted full-back alongside Gakpo up top in a game so critical to sealing Champions League football. There are mitigating factors. Isak is working his way back from a long-term injury, while Hugo Ekitike is out with one himself. But this was another frustrating afternoon for Slot’s side where additional attacking firepower might well have won them the points. Nguhoma was the brightest of the starting front three, producing another fearless dribbling performance as he completed four of his five attempted take-ons. Gakpo, on the other hand, took just 12 touches — one in the attacking penalty area — as he struggled to get involved, making a number of fruitless runs in behind that were not found by wayward forward balls.  Frimpong was just too wide, understandably struggling to replicate Mohamed Salah’s goal-threat from the right flank. It meant that Szoboszlai once again stepped up from a midfield role, pressing high without the ball, arriving late to attack cut-backs and crosses, and crashing shots towards goal from distance.  All in all, it is a point that should secure a top five spot for Liverpool, but this was an attacking performance reflective of the wider season as Anfield, not for the first time of late, was left wondering what might have been. Perhaps Chelsea have given themselves some hope going into the FA Cup final. Few gave them a chance of leaving Anfield with anything after six successive league defeats, their worst run since 1993. Optimism was in even shorter supply after Gravenberch had the home side in front so early. That took Chelsea’s run without a clean sheet in the top division to 14 matches. They last had a streak as bad as this in 1991 (17 games). Chelsea were staring more unwanted history in the face by losing seven successive league matches for the only the second time in their history and the first since 1952. So the manner of Chelsea’s response offers encouragement, and not just because it secured them an equaliser. Key first-team players Caicedo, Cucurella and Palmer have been playing well below their standards. But this was much more like it, particularly from Caicedo and Cucurella. Caicedo helped Chelsea take a grip of midfield for a good portion of the match, while Cucurella caused Liverpool plenty of problems making runs in behind them from left wing-back. The sight of captain James coming on in the second half for his first appearance for nearly two months is a positive for Wembley. Confidence has been in short supply so at least interim head coach McFarlane has something to build on before facing City. We will bring you this after they have spoken at their post-match press conferences. Friday, May 15: Aston Villa (Away), Premier League, 8pm UK, 3pm ET Saturday, May 16: Manchester City, FA Cup final (Wembley), 3pm UK, 10am ET Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms