Liverpool 2-2 Bournemouth

Joshua King has scored nine times in his last 10 Premier League games for Bournemouth

Joshua King scored a dramatic late equaliser for Bournemouth as Liverpool dropped two crucial points at Anfield.

The Cherries took a surprise lead when Benik Afobe pounced on Georginio Wijnaldum's poor back-pass before rounding Simon Mignolet to score.

The visitors went close through Marc Pugh's volley and King before Philippe Coutinho equalised after Roberto Firmino's pass.

Divock Origi, starting ahead of injured forward Sadio Mane, headed Liverpool ahead but King struck four minutes from the end of normal time from close range.

• Relive the action from Anfield

Liverpool's Champions League hopes dented

Liverpool remain third in the table, two points ahead of fourth-placed Manchester City, who have a game in hand.

At one stage on Wednesday, Jurgen Klopp's side were level on points with second-placed Tottenham only to finish the night five points behind Spurs, who scored three late goals to beat Swansea 3-1.

The Reds had come from behind to take the lead against a well organised Bournemouth team but there was disappointment at the final whistle as Liverpool once again failed to register a win against a team from the bottom half of the table.

Wijnaldum's dreadful back-pass gifted the Cherries their first goal at Anfield since 1968 before Coutinho's composed finish after a lovely pass by his fellow Brazilian Firmino.

Divock Origi was starting in place of Sadio Mane who is out with a knee injury

Artur Boruc pushed Nathaniel Clyne's swirling attempt onto the bar before Wijnaldum made up for his error to set up Origi to head Liverpool's second.

However, Klopp's side paid the price for failing to see the game out.

King, who had gone close to making it 2-0 after a powerful run, was allowed to wiggle free inside the Liverpool box to plant the equaliser.

Reds show soft under-belly

Liverpool's impressive record against the Premier League's top six this season is well documented - unbeaten in 10 games and five wins.

Yet their last six league defeats have come against teams in the bottom half of the table.

Although they have equalled last season's points tally with seven games remaining, this result will feel like a defeat for a team looking to qualify for the Champions League for the first time since 2014.

Burnley, Bournemouth, Swansea City, Hull City and Leicester City have all beaten the Reds this season, while bottom club Sunderland have also held Liverpool.

This will go down as another missed opportunity.

Cherries rise to the occasion

After an eight-match winless league start to 2017, Bournemouth are now unbeaten in five as they edge towards securing a third successive season in England's top-flight.

Eddie Howe's side showed character and spirit as they added another big name to their list of creditable draws.

Tottenham, Manchester United and Arsenal have all been frustrated by the Cherries this season, while Liverpool have taken just one point off the south coast team.

Back in December, Nathan Ake struck a 93rd-minute winner to earn Bournemouth, who had trailed 0-2 and 1-3, a 4-3 win over the Reds.

King's late equaliser sparked similar scenes of jubilation among Bournemouth's fans as they secured a first-ever point at Anfield.

Man of the match - Artur Boruc (Bournemouth)

Artur Boruc's finger-tip save to push Nathaniel Clyne's swirling attempt on to the bar was outstanding

'Coutinho was sick'

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp: "Philippe Coutinho felt sick at half-time. He vomited. It's no joy when you have to take off the best player in this moment on the pitch, because he played really well.

"The result is not what we wanted but it could have been worse, actually. We all know we have lost games like this in the season and tonight we didn't. Maybe we can take this as a positive.

"It's my responsibility, all of this, and I have to be clear in this situation. I will find a solution for this."

Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe: "It took the win at Chelsea last year to really get the players to believe we could win anywhere in the division but I think this season the big results against those teams have reinforced that belief.

"That showed here, when you are 2-1 down, you have to keep believing, keep the focus that you can score. We did that and that will further enhance us in further games."

'Two points in four games without Mane'

• Liverpool have won just two points in four Premier League games without Sadio Mane appearing this season (won none, drew two, lost two).

• No Brazilian has scored more Premier League goals than Philippe Coutinho (29 - level with Juninho).

• Joshua King has doubled his Premier League goal tally from last season (six) with 12 goals, scoring nine goals in his last 10 Premier League appearances for the Cherries.

• Divock Origi now has 10 goals in all competitions for Liverpool this season - only Sadio Mane (13) has more for the club.

• Liverpool have scored 41 goals in 16 Premier League games at Anfield this season (average of 2.56 goals per game) - only in the 2013-14 season have they averaged more goals at home (2.79 goals per game).

• Premier League games involving Liverpool this season have seen 105 goals - the most of any team in the division.

What's next?

Liverpool are back in action at 15:00 BST on Saturday when they are away at mid-table Stoke City, who they have beaten three times since losing 6-1 away in May 2015. Bournemouth entertain leaders Chelsea on Saturday (17:30 BST).

Reaction

Bournemouth's chairman was proud of his team's players and fans at Anfield