Liverpool’s dire run of form continued as Craig Dawson and Ruben Neves got on the scoresheet for Wolves in a 3-0 thrashing of the beleaguered Reds at Molineux on Saturday.
The Reds’ bid for a first Premier League win of 2023 never materialized as debutant Dawson followed up Joel Matip’s bizarre own goal to put Wolves firmly in control inside 12 minutes.
Jurgen Klopp’s side had plenty of possession after the break, but any hope of a comeback was extinguished in the 19th minute when Neves rounded off a quick break to make it 3-0.
As well as avenging last year’s FA Cup exit against Liverpool, Wolves claimed a massive three points in their bid to avoid relegation, leaving struggling Liverpool in 10th place and without a win in four league games.
Wolves needed just five minutes to break down a Liverpool defense bereft of confidence as Hwang Hee-chan’s cut-back turned off Matip and against the post before crossing the goal line.
Liverpool shook off that goal seven minutes later when Joe Gomez inexplicably headed Matheus Cunha’s cross out of Alisson’s grasp and allowed Dawson to fire high into the net from close range.
Jose Sa denied Darwin Nunez with a one-on-one save two minutes later, but Liverpool were fortunate to be 2-0 down at half-time when Matheus Nunes raced over to pull a similar stoppage shot past Alisson.
Max Kilman cleared the line amid a goalmouth scramble as Liverpool looked to respond after the break, before Mohamed Salah headed just wide of the bottom left corner.
Sa produced another huge save from Nunez’s low strike as Wolves sat deep to defend their lead, but Julen Lopetegui’s men secured the points when Adama Traore raced past Neves to finish smartly with his left foot.
Wolves player ratings
GK: Jose Sa – 7/10 – Made a few saves at important junctures in the game.
RB: Nelson Semedo – 7/10 – Solid in defence and cleared his lines frequently.
CB: Craig Dawson – 7/10 – Did belt in an absolute barnstormer of a strike but was also culpable of the odd defensive brain-fart here and there.
CB: Max Kilman – 8/10 – Made a couple of crucial blocks in the box and enjoyed causing some chaos in Liverpool’s box at set pieces.
LB: Rayan Ait-Nouri – 7/10 – Often on hand to clear danger out at the back and displayed some quick feet at times.
RM: Hwang Hee-chan – 6/10 – Played an important role in the opener, with his cross hitting Matip and going in. Industrious before being forced off through injury.
CM: Ruben Neves – 8/10 – Consistently broke play up with tackles to keep the visitors at the bay. Got forward to run onto Traore’s pass and finished well past Alisson.
CM: Mario Lemina – 7/10 – A little looser with the ball than most of his teammates but didn’t lack work rate.
LM: Matheus Nunes – 7/10 – Sharp on the ball and helped keep Liverpool’s right hand side of Salah and Alexander-Arnold quiet.
ST: Pablo Sarabia – 6/10 – A nice dribble here and there, but a few others impressed more-so than Sarabia.
ST: Matheus Cunha – 7/10 – Made a few darting runs and looked a threat in behind.
Substitutes
Adama Traore (42′ for Hwang) – 7/10 – His pace opened up the game late in the game. Held the ball long enough before setting up Neves.
Joao Moutinho (60′ for Sarabia) – 7/10 – Wonderful ball through to Traore set up Wolves’ third. Kept Wolves ticking over until full time.
Raul Jimenez (60′ for Cunha) – 6/10 – Had a couple of shooting opportunities and pressed well up front.
Manager
Julen Lopetegui – 8/10 – Managed to effectively nullify Liverpool’s attacking threat while exposing their extreme defensive frailties.
Liverpool player ratings
GK: Alisson – 6/10 – Made a couple of stops but was largely powerless to stop anything soaring past him.
RB: Trent Alexander-Arnold – 4/10 – A little too weak in defensive situations and set piece delivery was off.
CB: Joel Matip – 2/10 – Gave away a goal with bad positioning early on. Tried to bring Liverpool forward and played one or two nice passes, but kept gifting Wolves opportunities.
CB: Joe Gomez – 4/10 – Did win plenty in the air but struggled with Matip doing little help beside him.
LB: Andy Robertson – 5/10 – Didn’t lack fight and took on four shots without success.
CM: Naby Keita – 4/10 – Got into some very promising positions but poor finishing let him down consistently.
CM: Stefan Bajcetic – 5/10 – Showed some grit in midfield to clean up loose ball but was overwhelmed like the rest of Liverpool’s midfielders.
CM: Thiago – 4/10 – Fired some nice passes into the frontline but didn’t offer much when Wolves pressed forward.
RW: Mohamed Salah – 4/10 – Took on a couple of shots but neither were totally convincing. Needs more help around him.
ST: Darwin Nunez – 4/10 – Got in on goal a couple of times but failed to make Wolves pay. A familiar story.
LW: Cody Gakpo – 3/10 – Needs to show some physicality and get off the fringes of the game. Little to no impact.
Substitutes
Jordan Henderson (65′ for Keita) – 5/10 – Barked at his teammates a bit but the game had pretty much gone already.
Harvey Elliott (77′ for Bajcetic) – N/A
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (85′ for Gakpo) – N/A
James Milner (85′ for Thiago) – N/A
Kostas Tsimikas (85′ for Robertson) – N/A
Manager
Jurgen Klopp – 3/10 – Needs to find some remedies to this awful run Liverpool are on. They look sheepish and without direction at a crucial part of the season. Will welcome the imminent returns of a few injured first teamers.
