Núñez and Salah deny Fulham dream start after Mitrovic torments Liverpool

Darwin Núñez’s impact was almost immediate. Until his arrival six minutes into the second half Liverpool had been listless, frequently beaten to the punch by Fulham. The Uruguayan, direct, speedy and hungry, soon had the promoted team on the back foot. The £85m man’s first Premier League goal, a smart back-heel, came within 15 minutes of his introduction and he also played his part in Mohamed Salah’s goal to rescue a 2-2 draw.

The day belonged to another striker, too. Aleksandar Mitrovic, coming off 43 Championship goals last season and attempting to buck the reputation of being short of Premier League class, scored twice. The first was a trademark header, the second a penalty converted after a foul by a foxed, lunging Virgil van Dijk, to suggest that the Serb – and Fulham – may belong in the top division.

This was the first time Fulham had avoided defeat in the opening game of a top-flight season after winning promotion, which is a good sign – as was a performance roared on by an appreciative home crowd.

Drawing the opening match of the season is no disaster for Liverpool but Van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold struggling and an attack blunted until Núñez’s arrival ought to concern Jürgen Klopp. Jordan Henderson hit the bar in the closing seconds but this was most definitely an escape. “The attitude was not right in the beginning,” said Klopp.

Trouble was coming from the opening seconds when Mitrovic was given space to fire past Alisson’s left post. He might have done far better but that would not be his last chance.

Fulham squeezed Liverpool in midfield from that moment on, making their opponents look woozy, distracted, their frustrations reflected by Alisson angrily clanking a clearance into the lower tier of the new