Liverpool vs Aston Villa: A spectacular comeback at Villa Park?

While their 10-month long club-record unbeaten streak under Jurgen Klopp seemed to be halted,

Liverpool

dug deep to conjure a stellar finish by Andy Robertson arriving at the back post to head them level.

Later, Mane provided the final, remarkable twist, glancing a header from Trent Alexander-Arnold's corner past Tom Heaton and into the far corner of the net.

It was a cruel blow to

Aston Villa

, who had led from the 21st minute through summer-signing Trezeguet's first goal for the club, a volleyed finish from John McGinn's free-kick.

The host had shown huge endeavor, in a display that saw them match the European champions in the first half and then hold them largely at arm's length until the dying moments of the second.

Aston Villa

started the game strongly and looked to get at

Liverpool

’s defense as Anwar El Ghazi had an early shot saved by Alisson in the first minute.

Having won two on the bounce last month,

Villa

have now lost back-to-back games, admittedly to the league's top two sides, leaving them in 16th place, three points above the relegation zone.

Liverpool

's win means they retain their advantage over second-placed Manchester City, who staged their own comeback to beat Southampton and visit Anfield for a top-of-the-table

Premier League

clash next Sunday.

Liverpool

manager, Jurgen Klopp, admitted that there was an element of luck about his side's two late goals at

Aston Villa

but still believed they deserved the win.

"We made it hard for ourselves," said Klopp.

"Villa was ready to play for a proper fight, a proper battle, defend with all you have, try to find counter-attack opportunities. We conceded a goal and then it is hard to change this wrong path and wrong decisions immediately.

"It is lucky to score these goals of course, but when you look at the game if either side deserved to win it is us.

"We still need to learn and get better. Sometimes you need to get knocks and today we got knocks. For really little mistakes we got really big knocks but at the end we could sort it."

Key Statistics:

·        

Liverpool are unbeaten in seven Premier League games in which they have conceded the first goal, winning six of those (D1); they have won more points from losing positions (10) than any other side in the top-flight this season.

·        

Liverpool have earned 31 points from their 11 Premier League games this season; in English top-flight history, only Tottenham in 1960-61 (33, adjusted to three points for a win) have had more at this stage of a campaign.

·        

Aston Villa have been unbeaten in their last four home Premier League matches.

·        

Aston Villa have lost 11 points in games in which they have gone ahead this season, more than any other Premier League side.

·        

Liverpool have won 14 consecutive Premier League games against newly-promoted opposition.

·        

Liverpool's Sadio Mane has more assists in 11 league games this season (two) than he provided in 36 such appearances last term (one).

·        

Sadio Mane scored the 35th 90th-minute winning goal by Liverpool in the Premier League, at least 10 more than any other side in the competition's history; five of those have come since the start of last season, more than any other team.

·        

Trezeguet is the first Egyptian player to score a Premier League goal for Aston Villa, meaning players from 32 different nations have now scored in the competition for the Villains (excluding own goals).

·        

Andy Robertson has scored two goals in his last six games for Liverpool in all competitions, one more than his first 88 appearances for the club before this.

·        

Aged just 21 years and 26 days, Trent Alexander-Arnold made his 100th appearance in all competitions for Liverpool. Since his debut in October 2016, only Roberto Firmino (36) and Mohamed Salah (28) have more assists for the title-chasing Reds than Alexander-Arnold (22).

Man of the Match:

Alexander-Arnold made his 100th Liverpool appearance, becoming the fourth-youngest player to achieve that feat in the Reds history.

The 21-year-old was the Reds’ standout player, showcasing his unbelievable quality and playmaking-ability.

His long-range passing was a joy to watch and he fired one deflected strike over the crossbar.

His free-kick won the corner, which he then took, to assist Mane’s winning goal.

This is a special young footballer we are watching blossom at Anfield.

Mane once again adopted his left-sided role, and although this was often an infuriating performance, he was ultimately the Reds’ hero.

He always looked a threat when he drove at the Villa defense, but his final ball was wretched, whether his passes be over-hit or simply played to the wrong man.

The Senegalese assisted Robertson’s equalizer and then headed home the winner, rendering all that came before it meaningless.

After the match, Sadio Mane admitted that there was an element of luck about his winning goal at Aston Villa.

"It was a perfect delivery from the corner, and in the end, I was even a bit lucky the ball went in," Mane said.

"Today was not our best performance, but we deserved the three points. Aston Villa have been the team that pushed us harder so far. That's why this is the best league in the world, every single game can be like this one."

It appeared that it would be a bad day for Klopp’s side, but he has built a winning mentality in this squad.

Although his decision to start Lallana was a strange one, once again the playing to win the mindset of his players shone.

Replacing Wijnaldum with Oxlade-Chamberlain was an appropriate decision made at the right time, making it an enormous day in the

Premier League

title race.

Liverpool host Genk at Anfield in the Champions League on Tuesday before facing second-placed Manchester City in the Premier League on Sunday, 10 November while Villa take on Wolverhampton Wanderers in the Premier League next Sunday.