Antonio Conte may be one of the more humble Chelsea managers but he happily took credit for their merited draw. Willian, his third substitute, equalised with a slice of good fortune while Jürgen Klopp anxiously waited to make two of his own in the 85th minute. “I moved Pedro to wing-back and put Willian with the two strikers,” the visiting coach explained. “I think it was a good idea.”

A good idea and a good point for the champions in the circumstances. They had the edge over Liverpool in the first half but trailed to Mohamed Salah’s 10th league goal of the season after the hosts turned the tide in the second period. A fourth league defeat of the season beckoned, only one fewer than in their entire title-winning campaign, until the Brazilian playmaker Willian’s intended cross sailed over the stranded Simon Mignolet and rescued a point.

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The league leaders, Manchester City, may be the happiest team with this result between two potential contenders but the impact of Conte’s substitutions and the refusal to accept defeat bodes well for Chelsea. Another reminder of what they lost, or failed to nurture, in the Stamford Bridge old boy Salah’s latest influential performance provided the sting. Klopp claimed he could live with a point against champions who made life “difficult” for Liverpool although seeing another victory vanish late on, so soon after Sevilla completed a comeback to 3-3 in stoppage time in Tuesday’s Champions League game, was punishing. “Most parts of our game were good but it doesn’t feel like it at the moment,” the German reflected.

The long flight back from Qarabag in the early hours of Thursday showed no after-effects on Eden Hazard. He must have been in first class. Chelsea’s immaculate playmaker was at the heart of almost every threat in the first half, and there were plenty as Conte’s team created the better openings. They were content to sit deep and absorb Liverpool pressure but also possessed menace with Hazard finding pockets of space to orchestrate proceedings.

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“The start of his season was full of trouble because of injury and needing the best time to recover [from injury],” said Conte. “But now I think Eden is in really good form. He likes to play as a striker. There is a good link with Álvaro [Morata] and for me it’s important that we can play two different systems – we played 3-4-2-1 against Qarabag and 3-5-2 today – and keep our identity.”

Both teams contributed to an absorbing, intriguing game. Both managers also freshened things up after midweek Champions League trips by making five changes to the teams who started in Azerbaijan and Seville. Even allowing for the second-half collapse in Andalusia and an intensive schedule of 13 matches in 44 days, it was a surprise that Liverpool started without Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mané against such a well-drilled defence. Klopp shifted two-thirds of his first-choice attack to the bench as Daniel Sturridge made his fifth league start of the campaign and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain only a second. The pair worked hard for meagre reward.

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Liverpool’s collective effort impressed, particularly when covering for each other defensively and regaining possession quickly, but they struggled to turn territorial advantage into a clear sight of Thibaut Courtois’s goal.

Their most potent outlet came from Salah. The former under-used Chelsea player was closest to a breakthrough for Liverpool in the first half when he spun Gary Cahill on the edge of the area and curled a left-foot shot just wide. Otherwise the home side rarely troubled the Belgium goalkeeper until the second half.

Chelsea had created the better openings before the break with Hazard constantly to the fore but Klopp’s team reappeared with greater aggression and intent. The previously anonymous Philippe Coutinho saw more of the ball while Klopp’s decision to swap Salah and Oxlade-Chamberlain to the left and right flanks, respectively, improved their contributions too.

Salah’s influence grew throughout the game and he struck his 15th goal in 20 appearances for his new club after a Liverpool attack appeared to have been nullified outside the Chelsea penalty area. Coutinho’s pass rolled into the path of Tiémoué Bakayoko, who was unable to intercept at full stretch and the alert Oxlade-Chamberlain nudged the ball on to his Egyptian team-mate. Salah took one touch in his stride before beating Courtois with a clinical finish inside the near post. His celebrations were restrained. Klopp’s were not, though amid the emotion he was minded to replace Sturridge with Georginio Wijnaldum and attempt to protect Liverpool’s advantage.

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The tactic was succeeding until Willian’s fortunate intervention. Chelsea, despite Conte’s claims to the contrary, were largely contained in the second half but their performance improved with each of the manager’s substitutions – Cesc Fàbregas, Pedro and finally Willian.

The Brazilian had few options when he collected Hazard’s pass and drifted beyond Ragnar Klavan to the corner of the penalty area with five minutes remaining. He aimed a cross towards the far post but instead it sailed over Mignolet, standing yards off his line and unable to save with his fingertips, and the ball dropped into the net.