Liverpool were denied a win at Anfield, settling for a frustrating 0-0 draw while Fulham earned their inaugural point of the Premier League campaign on the host turf. The match, which saw Liverpool hand a first‑team Premier League debut to winger Bradley Barcola, unfolded with the home side appearing a touch sluggish in possession early on, a likely after‑effect of their recent high‑intensity clash with Atletico Madrid in the Champions League.
A rare mistake from goalkeeper Alisson created a near‑scoring opportunity for Fulham's Goncalo Garcia, only for Jeremy Jacquet to intervene with a timely clearance, preserving the deadlock. The Reds came close to breaking the deadlock when Victor Munoz rose to meet a corner from Kostas Tsimikas, his header rattling the crossbar midway through the first half. Despite the early pressure, Fulham managed to dominate large swathes of the ball, even though they entered the encounter on the back of three consecutive defeats under new manager Alvaro Arbeloa.
Their resilience was evident, and they generated several clear chances in the second half. Josh King unleashed a long‑range effort that forced Alisson to tip the ball wide, while substitute Rodrigo Muniz, after receiving a low cross from fellow sub Kevin, failed to control the ball cleanly and missed a golden opportunity to put Fulham ahead. In stoppage time, Alexander Isak rose to meet a corner from Dominik Szoboszlai, only to glance his header wide of the post.
The stalemate leaves Liverpool manager Andoni Iraola still searching for his first Premier League victory at Anfield. To date, his record at the ground stands at three draws in four league games, a respectable unbeaten run but one that falls short of the club's lofty expectations. The positives from the evening largely belonged to former Liverpool player-turned‑coach Arbeloa, whose side showed moments of tactical discipline despite their recent poor form.
Key moments of the match: - 12' – Alisson's mishandling nearly leads to a goal, but Jacquet clears Garcia's chance. - 22' – Munoz's header from Tsimikas' corner smacks the crossbar.
- 76' – King fires from distance, Alisson tips the ball over the bar. - 79' – Kevin's cross finds Muniz, who fails to control and miss the chance.
- 90+1' – Isak's header from Szoboszlai's corner sails wide. After the final whistle, Iraola addressed the media, acknowledging the fatigue that hampered his side. "In the end, this is the easier one for me, for you, for everyone – our players were tired.
I think there is a lack of freshness, definitely. We cannot hide it," he said. He highlighted the unusually short turnaround of just over 60 hours between the Champions League win over Atletico and the league fixture, noting that such scheduling pressures would become more common as the season progresses.
"We have to adapt to these circumstances. It's this kind of game that you need to win, sometimes with a set piece, sometimes with a shot from the edge, sometimes from a moment of brilliance from the offensive players and we haven't had that today.
We've been clearly not as good offensively as we've been in other days," Iraola added. On midfield control, Iraola admitted that Liverpool were late to press in the first half, but praised the improvement after halftime. "I think we improved this part a lot in the second half.
We were better structured, we controlled the game better in the second half, even without scoring the goal," he explained. When asked whether playing at home was affecting the team, Iraola responded, "I didn't feel it three days ago against Atletico Madrid. Is it because we haven't won? I don't know.
I prefer to play at home, definitely I prefer to play at home. We cannot find the reasons outside, we have to find the reasons inside the pitch." Fulham head coach Alvaro Arbeloa also spoke after the match, reflecting on the challenges of building belief when results are not forthcoming.
"I know that when you are not winning games, it's not so easy that your players believe in your ideas. I know everything is easy when you win but they believe in the way that we have been working and I showed them the things that we were doing so well," he said. Arbeloa praised his team's effort but warned that mistakes are costly in the Premier League.
"If you have chances, try to take those chances but also to be a little bit more balanced and control the transition against a team when all teams here in England have quick players. I think we did better and we realised how important it is to be balanced," he added. He highlighted the importance of transition work that the squad had been training on since his first day, noting a turning point after the Crystal Palace game that reinforced the need for balance when in possession.
"From my first day, we trained so hard about the transition. But I think everything changed after the Crystal Palace game because I think we have been working all this week, but in the first week also, how important it is to be balanced when you have the ball," Arbeloa concluded. Sky Sports' Adam Bate offered his perspective from Anfield, recalling the celebrations that followed Iraola's first Champions League win against Atletico Madrid just three days earlier.
While that triumph was expected to arrive at some point in the season, the real question now is how the Basque coach will manage an increasingly congested schedule. Iraola's previous successes at Rayo Vallecano and Bournemouth came without the added strain of European commitments, and this fixture served as his first major test of juggling domestic and continental duties. Bate argued that Liverpool struggled to match the tempo Iraola typically demands, starting slowly and never quite reaching the intensity required to dominate the game.
Fulham, bolstered by energetic attacking substitutes, appeared equally poised to claim the three points. Iraola's unbeaten run as Liverpool manager continues, a streak that dates back to early January when he guided Bournemouth to a series of positive results. However, his home record – just two points from matches against Nottingham Forest and Fulham – suggests that more is needed to satisfy the Anfield faithful.
The draw underscores the fine margins in a league where a single mistake can swing the outcome, and both managers will be keen to adjust tactics ahead of the next round of fixtures. Overall, the match was a tactical battle marked by missed chances, disciplined defending, and a shared sense of fatigue.
While Liverpool maintain an unbeaten league record under Iraola, the lack of goals will undoubtedly prompt introspection as the season progresses. Meanwhile, Fulham can take heart from securing their first point, demonstrating resilience after a difficult start and laying a foundation for future improvement.