Arne Slot’s side are doing more than a few things right but improvement is needed before they slide down the hill again
Liverpool won their fourth game in a row with a 2-1 victory over Wolves on Saturday. Arne Slot’s side are now on a seven-game unbeaten run in all competitions after a dreadful autumn when they lost nine games out of 12. So are the Reds back now?
What was the win like?
Not unexpectedly, the home side dominated much of the ball in the first half against visitors who are rock bottom of the league. Wolves have only managed two points out of a possible 54 so far this campaign. They have a -29 goal difference and are almost certain to go down this season.
Still, it would have been far from impossible for Liverpool to fluff their lines and the Reds did struggle to convert their dominance of the ball into a goal, despite coming close several times, notably early in the proceedings when Florian Wirtz slipped a delicious through ball into the path of Hugo Ekitike, but the in-form Frenchman could only find the post. Wolves did put in a good defensive display as well.
But Liverpool took the lead on minute 41 when Jeremie Frimpong darted down the inside right to the byline and then made a cut-back for Ryan Gravenberch, who slammed the ball in past Jose Sa. The lead was doubled just 89 seconds later, Florian Wirtz scoring his first goal for the club after he was put through by Ekitike and then slotted in past Sa.
Slot’s side were in control at the break but then Wolves equalised rather early in the second period. Santiago Bueno was on hand to turn in from inside the six-yard box after Tolu Arokodare’s header from a corner was initially saved by Alisson. Things then hung in the balance for the rest of the game and Liverpool needed a vital block from substitute Conor Bradley to prevent Jhon Arias from converting Jorgen Strand Larsen’s cross and equalising towards the end.
So Liverpool have turned things around after dropping out of the title race thanks to their fall in autumn. They are currently fourth in the league, only seven points behind Aston Villa, who are supposedly in the title race; and they are 10 behind Arsenal, with 20 games still to be played and 60 points to be fought for. Anything could happen come 2026.
However, there is also plenty of room for improvement, with their victories slender and requiring long stretches of time where they survive in the end. After getting into a two-goal lead, they were in danger of dropping points last week against a Tottenham team who were a man down, and they could well have if Christian Romero had not lost his head and made things much more difficult for his side by getting sent off in the final minutes.
Liverpool have also drawn against newly promoted sides Sunderland and Leeds in their last five, managed Saturday’s difficult win over newly promoted Wolves, and their only comfortable win was the impressive one over Brighton two weeks ago.
Their inability to defend set pieces is also a problem. It was touched on by Slot in the build-up to Saturday’s game, and it was on display again when Santiago Bueno halved the deficit for Wolves from a set piece, after Alisson had initially parried Tolu Arokodare’s header.
It means Liverpool have now conceded 12 goals from set pieces this season. They are tied for most set piece goals conceded in the league, alongside Nottingham Forest and Bournemouth. Things are going well, but improvement is needed to keep them from sliding down the hill again.
