Gary Cahill scores in Chelsea's win over Liverpool

England centre back Gary Cahill was on target and put in a heroic performance for Chelsea in their 2-1 win over Liverpool on Saturday.

The early kick-off finished in the west London side's favour after Cahill poked home from close range and Diego Costa slammed home the winner after Liverpool midfielder Emre Can had opened the scoring at Anfield.

Cahill's equaliser, after 14 minutes, was only awarded after referee Anthony Taylor consulted the Hawk Eye and Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho praised the innovation.

He said: “I'm happy for everything to help. What has happened today is that everybody knows the truth. It's a goal.

“It's fantastic for the players and the crowd and the referee. It can be hard for him. Without the technology it can be difficult to make a decision.

“It's more difficult to use for other things like penalties. Sometimes it's impossible for the referee to give.

“Goal-line technology is simple. It costs money but it's simple. You don't have to stop the game, it's a decision in seconds. You can't put a price on the truth.”

Luke Shaw, Michael Carrick and Three Lions captain Wayne Rooney all played their part in Manchester United's 1-0 win over Crystal Palace.

England and West Ham striker Andy Carroll made his long-awaited return from injury by featuring for the last four minutes of the east London side's 0-0 draw with Aston Villa. The Hammers might be disappointed by dropping two points but seeing their leading man return should be a fine consolation.

Nathaniel Clyne played for Southampton in their 2-0 home win over Hull as he continues to impress this season at right-back for the south coast side.

In the Championship, three members of Gareth Southgate’s Under-21s squad for upcoming matches with Portugal and France were on display at the Riverside.

The top of the table clash between Middlesbrough and Bournemouth saw defender Ben Gibson up against hotshot Cherries striker Callum Wilson – and the pair had quite the contest during the 0-0 stalemate. Another forward, and the third Under-21s youngster involved in the action, was Patrick Bamford with the Chelsea loanee spearheading the Boro attack. 

Despite the recent exploits of the two marksmen in front of goal, it was England U20 international Adam Reach who almost opened the scoring 14 minutes in – crashing a 25-yard drive against the bar.

After a few jostles throughout the half, minutes before the break Gibson was left grounded in a heap after a tussle with Wilson. Two minutes later, after dusting himself off, the big centre back received a yellow card after a foul on the Bournemouth man.

That brought a fairly even opening half to an end, and the second started in the same fashion with the visitors gaining the slight upper hand as the match wore on, leading Middlesbrough to shuffle their frontline as Bamford was withdrawn on 58 minutes – but despite the change the contest was to end goalless.

With that draw, Derby County had the chance to go top with a victory over Wolves at home – and they rose to the occasion in fine fashion with another two members of Southgate’s squad impressing. 

Will Hughes grabbed an assist and goalkeeper Jack Butland kept a clean sheet as they helped fire the Rams to the summit of the Championship table with a 5-0 win over Wolves.

Elsewhere, fellow Under-21s man Jake Forster-Caskey played 69 minutes for Brighton as they drew 1-1 at home to Blackburn Rovers.

And England U18 midfielder Lewis Cook picked up a yellow card as his Leeds United side won 3-1 against Blackpool.

Tickets are still available for England v Slovenia at Wembley Stadium on Saturday 15 November, kick-off at 5pm. Click here for tickets.

You can see Gareth Southgate's England Under-21s side against Portugal at Burnley on Thursday 13 November. Tickets cost £10 for adults and £5 for concessions. Call 01282 70003 for more details.

Tickets for England U20s v Canada at Bournemouth cost just £3 for adults and £1 for U16s. Click here to book your seat.

Tickets for England U19s v Italy at Rotherham United cost £3 for adults and £1 for U16s. Click here to buy your tickets.