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Liverpool slumped to another defeat in the Premier League against relegation-threatened Wolves
Liverpool fell to a 3-0 defeat against Wolves in the Premier League.
An own goal from Joel Matip, a Craig Dawson strike on his Wolves debut and a Ruben Neves goal dealt Jurgen Klopp another hammer blow in the Premier League at Molineaux.
Analysis
Julen Lopetegui made four changes to the side that lost to Manchester City two weeks ago, by switching to a 4-4-2 formation.
New signings Craig Dawson and Pablo Sarabia both came in for their first Wolves starts, alongside Rayan Ait-Nouri and Matheus Cunha, as Nathan Collins, Hugo Bueno, Adama Traore and Raul Jimenez dropped to the bench.
Meanwhile, Jurgen Klopp made two changes to the side that lost to Brighton in the FA Cup, and started in a 4-3-3 formation.
Harvey Elliott dropped to the bench, while the injured Ibrahima Konate sat out this tie, as Joel Matip and Darwin Nunez both started.
Fabinho missed out on the squad altogether, while Fabio Carvalho and Nathaniel Phillips made the bench.
Liverpool’s injury-hit squad was also without Luis Diaz, Roberto Firmino, Arthur Melo, Virgil van Dijk and former Wolves forward Diogo Jota.
Wolves made a fast start to the first half at the Molineux with the home fans right behind them, as Matheus Cunha went close first with a shot that forced Alisson into a strong save.
Moments later, new signing Pablo Sarabia dragged a shot wide from inside the box in what could have been the opener.
Wolves were in control in the opening minutes until their high-press finally paid off after a ball over the top from Sarabia found Hwang and his cut back came off Matip and crossed the line for a Liverpool own goal, giving Wolves an early 1-0 lead in the 5th minute.
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However, the visitors could ask no real questions of the hosts as Wolves continued to press and soon found their second of the afternoon with the Liverpool defence looking rather fragile.
Craig Dawson on his debut followed up a rebound from a Wolves free-kick to smash the ball into the roof of the net and put Wolves 2-0 up after just 12 minutes.
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Liverpool started to grow into the game almost immediately as moments later, Jose Sa was called upon shortly to make a big save from a Nunez shot.
The visitors were enjoying a spell of possession and pressure, but Wolves’ defence was standing firm as Mohamed Salah also saw a shot fly over the bar.
Wolves were dealt a blow when Hwang pulled up with a hamstring strain in the 39th minute.
The forward had a superb half until his injury, and after receiving treatment on the pitch he was replaced by Adama Traore.
And After an impressive opening 20 minutes, Wolves found themselves leading 2-0 at half-time, and deservedly so.
Second Half
Liverpool were in the ascendency in the opening five minutes of the second half as Wolves tightened up defensively.
A scramble in the box saw the ball bounce up on to Kilman’s arm, and Liverpool appealed for a penalty, but nothing was given.
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Wolves were surviving a series of Liverpool attacks, as the visitors began to find space in between the lines and out wide.
Lopetegui was forced into making tactical changes to get his team on the ball more bringing in Joao Moutinho and Raul Jimenez in the 60th minute for Sarabia and Cunha.
Goalscorer Dawson almost handed Liverpool a gift when his poor pass found Cody Gakpo.
The Dutchman found Salah, who curled his effort just wide. But despite all of Liverpool’s dominance, Wolves added a third after 71 minutes with a superb counter attack.
Traore was sent flying down the right flank following a superb Moutinho pass and he did well to find a low cross, which Neves latched and brilliantly finished past Alisson.
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Wolves should have grabbed a fourth when Traore raced away again and set up Jimenez, who only had Alisson to beat.
The Mexican striker tried a trademark chip but did not get the right connection with the ball and it was Alisson’s to claim.
In the end Wolves defended doggedly to claim all three points and a clean sheet as Liverpool were handed a 3-0 defeat at Molineaux.
For Wolves, this win is a huge boost.
They are now up to 15th in the Premier League table and two points clear of the bottom three.
The defeat also saw the Reds slip down to 10th position on the summit.
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Man Of The Match - Ruben Neves
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The Wolves captain was absolutely sensational from start to finish.
He dictated the tempo of the match as Wolves dominated the midfield battle and capped a fine performance with a goal at the end of a lung-busting run, reminding fans who is the originator of the goal celebration synonymous with Marcus Rashford's goals.
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