There was a sense of occasion to Liverpool’s return to the top of the Premier League with the biggest league crowd in Anfield’s 132-year history present for the visit of Burnley. There was an undeniable sense, too, of a title-chasing team possessing the fight, the options and the nerve needed for another gruelling race with Manchester City.

Jürgen Klopp’s leaders were far from their fluent, relentless best against a Burnley side that squandered two one-on-ones at 2-1 and whose positive approach belied their lowly league position. They had excuses to hand. Alisson was out with illness, so too Joe Gomez, while Trent Alexander-Arnold was forced off at half-time with a suspected recurrence of a knee injury.

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“It’s the same area in the same knee,” said a worried Liverpool manager, who is also without the influence of Mohamed Salah and Dominic Szoboszlai. “He felt it when he got his studs stuck in the grass. We’ll have to wait and see.”

But excuses never came into Liverpool’s thinking. There was a reaction to the trying circumstances of the game, with Curtis Jones proving an able deputy at right-back and goalkeeper Caoimhín Kelleher making vital interventions, and to last weekend’s defeat at Arsenal. Liverpool’s front three of Diogo Jota, Luis Díaz and Darwin Núñez were all on the scoresheet before a record league attendance boosted to 59,896 by the full opening of the new Anfield Road stand. “I’m really happy that a lot more people can see this wonderful team,” said Klopp. And to see a team forced to fight their way back to the summit by Vincent Kompany’s relegation-threatened visitors.

The Liverpool manager reflected: “I have no problem with fighting hard for a result. It was clear this would be a tricky afternoon and it would be about character. The boys showed exactly what we needed.”

The reaction Klopp demanded after Arsenal was slow in coming with Burnley starting brightly and stretching Liverpool on the counterattack. Kelleher made his first important stop when Zeki Amdouni broke away from Virgil van Dijk while Andy Robertson, making his first start since October, blocked another good chance for David Datro Fofana. With Maxime Estève and Dara O’Shea impressing in the heart of the Burnley defence, Kompany’s team looked comfortable. And then, with one lapse, they were behind.

James Trafford will not remember his Anfield visit with fondness. The England Under-21 goalkeeper made a costly error when coming off his line to claim an Alexander-Arnold corner. Trafford collided with O’Shea and completely missed the ball, leaving Jota the routine task of heading into an unguarded net. Jota did not have to move to convert his 14th goal of the season. “It’s a bit harsh to highlight this with the performance he put in,” argued Kompany. “One of the other positions dropped off early.”

Klopp’s frustration boiled over when Liverpool were denied a penalty for a Wilson Odobert grab on Jota. The Liverpool manager was booked for his protests and his mood deteriorated when Burnley levelled moments later. O’Shea timed his near-post run to perfection at a Josh Brownhill corner. Soaring above the smaller Liverpool duo of Díaz and Wataru Endo, the Burnley central defender dispatched a thumping header into the top corner.

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Harvey Elliott replaced Alexander-Arnold at the interval and played a major role in Liverpool’s recovery. When Trafford put his team under pressure with a poor clearance the hosts capitalised, pinning Burnley back and winning possession through Endo. Elliott crossed to the near post where Díaz converted with a diving header. The goal stood following a lengthy VAR review for offside. Kompany was booked for joining Burnley protests about a possible foul by Alexis Mac Allister on Aaron Ramsey in the buildup.

Kelleher produced another key save when Fofana burst through the centre of Liverpool’s defence. The loose ball fell to Odobert, who had to score, but the left-winger sliced woefully wide. Fofana found himself one-on-one with the Liverpool keeper again when put through by Amdouni but curled a wayward finish past the post.

The tireless Núñez punished Burnley’s profligacy. Elliott delivered the assist from the right once again, after Jota had played him in from a Robertson corner, and from his floated cross the Uruguay international did superbly to steer an awkward header beyond Trafford.