Florian Wirths scored his first Premier League goal as Liverpool defeated Wolves 2-1 at a tense Anfield match.
Shortly after Ryan Gravenbirch’s breakthrough late in the first half, Wirtz doubled Liverpool’s advantage by running through and pushing the ball past Jose Sa, following the introduction of Hugo Ekitike. From there, there appeared to be no turning back for the Wolves.
However, Santi Bueno forced the ball home early in the second half after Tolu Arokodare’s shot was deflected by Alisson Becker. Anfield was then tense as Wolves looked to score an unlikely equaliser. Arokodare had two more chances.
Despite Ekitike and Alexis Mac Allister both hitting the target in the first half, Arne Slott’s side were underwhelmed against a club at the bottom of the Premier League. They struggled to build the same momentum after the interval and continued to hang on.
Despite their fighting ability, Wolves are without a win in 18 Premier League games and are yet to pick up a point in seven games under Edwards. Liverpool, on the other hand, are currently unbeaten in six games and will be in the top four when the final whistle blows.
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Diogo Jota’s sons sent off Liverpool ahead of their game against former club Wolves, with both sides paying tribute to the late-arriving forward.
Wirtz: “It’s getting better and better.”
Liverpool manager Arne Slott told Sky Sports.
“The team has seen how much he does for us. It’s great that he scored the first goal, creating chances so close to the goal, but it’s just the beginning. I’m sure he’ll score many more goals for us because he knows his quality best. But the focus is still on the results.”
“Florian didn’t just score today, he was involved in many of the chances we created.”
In a subsequent press conference, Slott added: “He’s had a lot of good games for us, but I also think he’s getting better and better. I liked his performance as well. I thought he was special in a lot of moments.”
Big moment for Wirtz
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Florian Wirtz finally opens his Liverpool account with a brilliant finish against Wolves
Few could have imagined that Wirtz would have to wait so long for his first goal in a Liverpool shirt, but it finally came at his 23rd request. There were moments when it seemed like this was coming, such as the deflected equalizer against Sunderland.
It was the kind of goal Wirtz had hoped for and was the result of his off-the-ball movement and technical ability. The partnership with Ekitike is certainly promising. In fact, the forward returned the favor with a pass early in the game.
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Florian Wirtz reacts to scoring his first goal for Liverpool against Wolves
Liverpool supporters have seen enough that the German international has what it takes to play and develop at this football club, but the onus remains on Wirths to prove that. At Anfield, you want a final product that matches your flicks, tricks, sways and skills.
A goal at home to a club at the bottom of the Premier League, with the team already in the league, is less shocking in terms of its significance, but if it proves to be the springboard for another breakthrough and a weight lifted off his shoulders, it could be a pivotal point in Wertz’s Liverpool career.
Edwards was tired of losing.
Wolves manager Rob Edwards said in a press conference.
“It’s difficult because we lost again. I’m really fed up with the players and I know they’re hurting too. But I’ll look at the game again, take some of the emotion out of it and try to appreciate the good things too. In the second half we had a brave, high-quality team against a top team.”
“It wasn’t a bad start for the first 10-15 (minutes), but then Liverpool started to push back and put up a lot of numbers and it was difficult to get out. We adjusted the position of Matheus Mane – I thought he was great throughout the game – and we found Mane quite a lot between the lines. We said if we get the next goal it’s a game and we were right.”
