Andre’s stoppage-time winner saw Wolves defeat Liverpool 2-1 as the basement boys beat the reigning champions at Molineux.
Rodrigo Gomes came on to score a fine goal on the counter-attack well into the second half and though Mohamed Salah soon brought Liverpool level, the dramatic winner was not scored by Arne Slot’s side but by the team seemingly bound for the Championship.
It was a wild finale to a game that had started slowly, and how Slot will rue his team’s performance. A big win could have lifted Liverpool third. Instead, they stay fifth as Wolves, a team that had won only once all season until Friday, made it two wins in five days.
How Liverpool lost it late AGAIN
The win over Aston Villa on Friday gave Wolves a semblance of momentum but Liverpool should surely have started more aggressively than they did. Instead they wasted the first half, and a series of corners, with Joao Gomes the dominant presence.
Slot’s side pushed from the start of the second half, substitute Curtis Jones failing to score from a yard out when Cody Gakpo inexplicably toed it away from him on the line. And Liverpool paid for it on the break when Tolu Arokodare outmuscled Virgil van Dijk.
The Liverpool captain was pushed but he needed to be stronger, and the big Nigerian striker fed Rodrigo Gomes, who lifted the ball over Alisson under pressure from Ibrahima Konate.
Salah’s leveller appeared to have got Liverpool out of their hole.
However, his first Premier League goal for 122 days proved in vain when Andre’s speculative shot deflected off Joe Gomez and into the net in the 94th minute. It was unfortunate for Gomez but Liverpool lost all control of the contest and this is becoming a habit.
It is the fifth time this season that Slot’s side have conceded a winning goal in the 90th minute or later – the most ever by a team in a single campaign. Those slips have long since derailed their title defence. They could yet cost them Champions League football.
Same old story, says Slot
Liverpool boss Arne Slot speaking in the press conference:
“How would I sum it up? Same old story. Recently, we are picking up points because we scored many times from set-pieces. But what did not change in the last five, six, seven games is that we struggle and find it very hard to score from the open-play chances that we do create. Not as much as I would like from all the ball possession we have, but enough and far more than the other team.
“But, end result, we score one and they score two, and indeed another time in extra time, so it sums up our season again in this game.
“We have far more ball possession than the other team. We have created more open play and general chances than the other team. But from open play, we struggle to score. Recently, we scored a lot from set-pieces. Today, again, we had a lot of set-pieces. First half, very poor taking. A bit similar to how we played. I don’t think we played a very good first half.
“Second half was better, still not great, but better. Created more. And in extra time, or just before extra time, I think we were twice very close from chances to score [and make it 2-1].
“Mo who was dribbling and had it with two players open but the ball was intercepted by the defender and Virgil had the header. So, those chances, and the one we conceded was not even a chance. And that is what has happened so many times to us this season.
“That it happens in extra time might be a coincidence, maybe, although it happens so many times. We hardly give away a chance. Today we gave away one chance, we conceded two.”
He added: “I expected more from us than where we are now. It is another setback and we didn’t help ourselves with that result but there are still nine games to go so we are coming closer to the end and then dropping points when it is absolutely not necessary.
“If we play this game 10 times I don’t think we will lose 10 times. It is far from sure we win every time. We don’t want to rely on a deflected shot. We have to play better. But credit to Wolves, they fight from the first minute to the end and get a bit of luck they deserve given how much they put into the game.”
Edwards: Not as bad as people thought!
Wolves boss Rob Edwards speaking in the press conference:
“We wanted to be in the game, we felt we could improve. More pressure on opponent, they start to open up, more spaces.”
Asked about the improvement, he said: “It is a work rate thing, it takes a while to realise how hard you have to work to win a game at this level. There is a stark difference now. We obviously have a small squad, everyone feels like they are not that far away.
“It is a tight group fighting for each other, working hard, showing we are not as bad as people might have thought. We are not playing how I want to play but we are showing characteristics. We are having to find a way.”
Liverpool return to Molineux for an FA Cup fifth-round tie on Friday evening under the Molineux lights once. “We have probably made them quite angry now so we will see!”
When it was put to him that the supporters might prefer to win in the cup given Wolves’ plight in the Premier League, Edwards replied. “Does it have to be one or the other? We will try to win both.”
