Liverpool won 1-0 vs Wolves on Saturday afternoon in a heroic finale. Here are five things we’ve learned, including how Divock Origi is everything to us.
Same again
Jurgen Klopp stuck with the same XI that beat Everton on Wednesday. It’s a risk, given the short turnaround and most of those players took on Southampton a week ago, too.
It tells us that there aren’t many fitness concerns in the first-team squad, which is nice. We can also expect near-total rotation against AC Milan.
Moving back towards consistent XIs is welcome, though. It’s been a while.
Defending deep
Teams usually defend deep against Liverpool but few are as resolute as Wolves. They’d frequently put 11 players within the defensive 40 yards, with next to no pressing up top.
It meant Liverpool had to operate in very tight spaces and be near-perfect with their link-up play. It’s something we saw coming, though the Reds didn’t do much to stop it against Wolves. Still, they created chances – there was just one problem…
Very, very poor
Liverpool were awful going forward – genuinely the worst they’ve been all season. This was not a case of Wolves being so good defensively that Liverpool didn’t have any chances. This wasn’t some miraculous goalkeeping display, either.
Liverpool just didn’t get anything right going forward. We watched Sadio Mane and Diogo Jota, in particular, give the ball away countless times in good positions. Mohamed Salah, on the other hand, was simply very quiet.
But Jota should take the brunt of the criticism here. He was clean through on goal with two defenders on the line. No one put him under pressure, no one limited his time. Both defenders stood in the same place and Jota still powered it straight at them.
An awful moment that should have swung the game for Liverpool against Wolves.
Divock Origi
Oh, Divock Origi. You are our everything. You are the reason we get up in the morning.
Origi came on and was actually pretty fantastic for his entire time on the pitch. The Belgian looked sharp, physical and just kept trying to threaten Wolves.
Liverpool needed him, too, as no one else really showed up vs Wolves.
Mohamed Salah helped make the magic happen, though. He spun and got the ball across for Origi, who took a touch, held off the defender, and smashed it home on the turn. Origi at his very best – what a hero he is.
Keep that momentum going
This was a very different article with two minutes to go. Origi saves the day, though, and keeps Liverpool’s winning run going with a fantastic finish.
This was a completely different win to the others we’ve seen in recent weeks. That’s a great thing – Liverpool won when it was difficult, won when they shouldn’t have, and made ground in the title race.
All hail Divock Origi.
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