Alexander Isak and Hugo Ekitike sink nine-man Tottenham as Liverpool close in on top four ​

Liverpool ground out a tense 2-1 win over Tottenham in a fiery encounter at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with the hosts ending the match with just nine players on the pitch.

A poor first half from both sides suddenly turned just before the break when Xavi Simons was shown a straight red card for a studs-up challenge from behind on Virgil van Dijk.

With the extra man, Liverpool took control after the interval. Half-time substitute Alexander Isak opened the scoring on 56 minutes with a composed finish, but injured himself in the process and had to be substituted almost immediately. Ten minutes later, Hugo Ekitike doubled the lead with a towering header, beating Cristian Romero in the air to seemingly put the game to bed.

Spurs, however, refused to fold. Richarlison once again caused Liverpool problems, pulling a goal back from close range after a corner in the 83rd minute to set up a nervy finale. In stoppage time, Romero picked up a second yellow card for kicking Ibrahima Konate while he was on the ground, leaving Tottenham down to nine men, yet they still pushed forward.

Alisson was forced into several important late saves to preserve the result, which moves Liverpool level on points with fourth-placed Chelsea, behind only on goal difference.