Alisson sprung up like a quarterback and hurled one of those pinpoint throws that enabled Trent Alexander-Arnold to start scampering as a wide receiver would.
Liverpool, suddenly, had an opportunity to grab the initiative in the Merseyside derby. Four red shirts surged forward to join Alexander-Arnold, among them Darwin Nunez. The right back passed the baton to the Uruguayan, who only needed to turn the ball inside and Luis Diaz was in on goal.
Instead, Nunez fumbled and the chance, 23 minutes in, was gone. There would be no touchdown, there would be no lift-off.