By Lori Ewing
LIVERPOOL, England (Reuters) – Mohamed Salah reached another scoring milestone as Liverpool went second in the Premier League with a 3-0 victory over Brentford on Sunday, while Aston Villa beat Fulham 3-1 to match a 40-year-old club record of 13 straight home league wins.
West Ham United’s Tomas Soucek powered home a late header to seal a topsy-turvy 3-2 victory over Nottingham Forest and end their winless streak, while Brighton & Hove Albion’s winless league run was extended to six games when they were held to a 1-1 draw by Sheffield United.
Salah scored in each half of Liverpool’s win to reach 200 goals in English football, becoming the first player in their history to score in each of their first six home league games of a season as Juergen Klopp’s side climbed over Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal in the table with 27 points after 12 games.
“Crazy,” Klopp said of the 31-year-old Salah, who has 10 goals in 12 league games this season. “Goal number 200 in England, right? Exceptional, played a super game today.”
Aston Villa cruised past Fulham with strikes from John McGinn and Ollie Watkins and an own goal by Antonee Robinson.
Villa Park has become a fortress under Unai Emery as his side, along with Liverpool and Manchester City, are the only teams to have won all their home matches so far this Premier League season.
“We are in the top five and I think this is a moment to enjoy and to analyse deeply, even when we are winning, how we can improve,” Emery said.
West Ham’s Soucek got on the end of James Ward-Prowse’s corner to seal the points for the Hammers who had gone four games without a victory in the league after a bright start to the campaign.
Victory lifted the Hammers to ninth in the table with 17 points from 12 games while Forest are 15th with 13 points.
Brighton & Hove Albion were reduced to 10 men after midfielder Mahmoud Dahoud picked up a red card.
Simon Adingra scored an early goal for Brighton but Dahoud’s sending-off for a stamp on Ben Osborn’s leg allowed United to capitalise and equalise through an Adam Webster own goal.
Brighton are eighth in the table, while Sheffield United are 19th with just one win.
(Reporting by Lori Ewing; Editing by Toby Davis)
