Liverpool recovered from a terrible start to secure a 3-1 win away to Wolves on Saturday, with those in the media assessing an up-and-down performance.
The Merseysiders returned after the international break with a testing trip to Molineux in the Premier League, and they again battled their way to three points.
Hwang Hee-chan fired Wolves into a deserved lead early on, as the visitors looked completely out of sorts, but things changed after the interval.
Cody Gakpo equalised just before being replaced, before Andy Robertson produced a lovely finish to put Liverpool ahead late on.
Harvey Elliott helped make it 3-1 with a stoppage-time deflection to seal the victory, as Jurgen Klopp‘s men continued their unbeaten start to the season.
Here’s how the media reacted to Liverpool’s win.
A well-earned three points were assessed…
The Daily Mail‘s Joe Bernstein hailed the spirit on show yet again from Liverpool this season:
“Mohamed Salah contributed a hat-trick of assists as Liverpool ended their lunchtime hoodoo with another stirring comeback win.
[…]
“Given the absences of Virgi van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold and four of his squad only returning to training on Friday after playing World Cup qualifiers in South America, Jurgen Klopp would have been delighted once again with the spirit of his side after a poor start to the game.
“They have previously fought back against Bournemouth and Newcastle this season with only 10 men and Saturday’s win at Molineux was a contrast to last season when they failed to win any of their six games that started at 12.30pm.”
On Twitter, David Lynch claimed that this was the type of win that suggests Liverpool are very much ‘back’:
“I think we’ve now seen enough evidence to suggest that Liverpool are a serious football team again.
“They just keep passing every test (red cards, conceding first, international hangovers) and that is down to a strong mentality but also a pretty ridiculous squad depth.”
Ben Fisher of the Guardian focused on the Jekyll and Hyde nature of the Reds’ win:
“This really was a game of two halves. Liverpool were woeful for much of the first period, a pale imitation of the team that had blown opposition away before the international break, but equalised in the second through Cody Gakpo before Andy Robertson, wearing the captain’s armband in the absence of the suspended Virgil van Dijk and the injured Trent Alexander-Arnold, took matters into his own hands to earn Liverpool the lead.
“Wolves’ Hugo Bueno then deflected a shot from the substitute Harvey Elliott into his own net before eight minutes of second-half stoppage time.
[…]
“Klopp berated Salah into tracking back. Joe Gomez struggled against a rampant Neto and Joël Matip was under the cosh. Klopp jogged down the tunnel at the break, O’Neil not far behind him. At that point another Liverpool win seemed unlikely.”
On Twitter, James Pearce praised Klopp’s substitutions, as they inspired the second-half comeback:
“Some turnaround that. Diaz, Elliott and Nunez made a massive difference off the bench. Thought Szoboszlai was excellent in the second half. Really drove them forward. Curse of the 12:30 KOs broken, LFC started playing at 1:30pm!”
Writing for This Is Anfield, Lynch felt that Liverpool’s squad depth proved to be key after the interval:
“Liverpool’s squad depth (or alleged lack of it) was a common talking point among supporters across the summer window on social media.
“But suggestions they are somehow massively short have been regularly shown up by the calibre of the manager’s substitutions across the start of this season.
“Here, Klopp was able to throw on Luis Diaz, Darwin Nunez, Harvey Elliott, Ibrahima Konate and Ryan Gravenberch as he looked to turn things around after a strong starting XI failed to show its quality.
“Those subs would be the envy of any manager across the Premier League, and were made despite the likes of Thiago Alcantara, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Virgil van Dijk missing out on the squad.”
Certain individuals hads to be focused on, too…
Lynch was left hugely impressed with Jarell Quansah on his first full appearance for Liverpool:
“How easy it would have been for Klopp to take a small risk with Ibrahima Konate‘s fitness by restoring the Frenchman to the starting line-up here.
“Instead, he made the brave decision to throw in Jarell Quansah for his first Premier League start in what the first half showed was testing circumstances.
“The 20-year-old had merited that faith with his performances in pre-season and off the bench across the start of this campaign, but this still represented a major step up.
“Fortunately, Quansah answered every question asked of him, making three tackles, five clearances and two interceptions before cramp set in and ended his afternoon.
“He also ended the game with a passing accuracy of 96.3 – higher than any other player on the pitch – and that despite showing plenty of ambition in his choice of pass.
“On the strength of this performance, Liverpool could well have uncovered another gem from their academy in Quansah.”
Stats guru Michael Reid took to Twitter to outline the brilliance of the incomparable Salah, on a day that saw him chip in with all three assists:
“Mo Salah is the first player to either score or assist a goal in each of Liverpool’s first 5 games of a league season since John Barnes in 1990-91.”
Finally, Ian Doyle of the Liverpool Echo lauded Robertson on a milestone day for him, as he captained Liverpool and made his 200th Premier League appearance for the club:
“Tactical and personnel tweaks during the break proved hugely effective and benefited Robertson in particular. Now with the lively Luis Diaz busying the Wolves rearguard and Liverpool employing an effective 4-4-2 formation, the Scot began to impose himself going forward.
“And it was Robertson who capped an excellent second-half recovery from the Reds by nudging them ahead five minutes from the end of normal time, controlling a clearance just inside the Wolves half, feeding the ball out wide right to Mohamed Salah and then continuing his run forward into the area to slot home the Egyptian’s low cross.
“Speaking last month, Klopp admitted he didn’t know the limit of his new-look Liverpool and that there would be bumps in the road for the foreseeable future.
“This, though, was another tricky test passed and, at least temporarily, moved the Reds back to the top of the Premier League for the first time in more than 16 months. And for Robertson, it was fitting finale to a proud afternoon.”
