Liverpool 2-1 Wolves: Wirtz breaks duck as Slot’s side hold off late surge after Jota tribute
ANFIELD — Florian Wirtz finally opened his Liverpool account and Ryan Gravenberch struck the opener before a nervy finish, as Liverpool edged Wolves 2-1 in a match framed by a moving tribute to the late Diogo Jota and a bleak milestone for the visitors’ winless season.
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Wolves, competitive throughout and adventurous after the break, fell to a record that underlines the scale of their struggle. Their 18th match without a win from the start of a Premier League season eclipses Sheffield United’s 17-game streak in 2020-21 and makes them the first top-flight side since Bolton in 1902-03 to go winless through their first 18 league fixtures. “I’ve just said to the lads that I’m getting fed up with this,” said manager Rob Edwards, seven games into his tenure and visibly frustrated after a late push fell short.
It had begun as a day to remember, solemnly, for Jota. The forward’s sons, Dinis and Duarte, and other young family members served as mascots for the first meeting between his two English clubs since his death in July. They walked out with Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk, wearing their father’s retired No. 20, as Rute Cardoso, Jota’s widow, watched from the touchline. Wolves supporters sang his name in the 18th minute; the Kop followed on 20, the tributes rippling across a hushed, appreciative Anfield.
On the pitch, Wirtz was the sharpest creative force. The Germany international threaded an early pass that sent Hugo Ekitiké into space, only for the striker’s clipped effort to strike the far post. José Sá was otherwise relatively untroubled until late in the half, even when he reacted superbly to turn an Alexis Mac Allister half-volley onto the upright — a stop that likely would have been rendered moot by an offside decision against Federico Chiesa, deputizing for the suspended Dominik Szoboszlai.
Then Liverpool found their gear and struck twice in two minutes. The first owed much to Jeremie Frimpong’s acceleration and timing. Collecting a neat layoff from Chiesa, the right wingback surged past João Gomes and Hugo Bueno and pulled back a measured pass for Gravenberch, who placed a calm first-time finish inside Sá’s bottom-left corner.
Wolves reeled, and Liverpool punished them again before they could reset. Milos Kerkez pinched the ball back high and, as Ekitiké spun away from his marker, slipped play through the heart of Wolves’ back line. Ekitiké’s release sent Wirtz racing into the gap; he reached the ball before the onrushing Sá and prodded home with conviction. It was his first Liverpool goal in his 23rd appearance — and his teammates made sure he felt the weight lift, swamping him in celebration by the corner flag.
For Arne Slot’s side, it should have been the platform to coast. Instead, old fragilities crept in and Wolves’ ambition grew. The visitors’ bright passages, often built on positive, quick passing, were personified by 18-year-old Mateus Mané on his full debut, all bravery and enterprise in tight spaces. Edwards urged the teenager to take a bow in front of the traveling fans at full-time — a nod to performance amid pain.
Wolves’ route back came from a set piece, a recurrent Liverpool concern. From André’s corner, Tolu Arokodare powered a header toward goal; Alisson sprang to his right to block on the line, but defender Santiago Bueno reacted first and buried the rebound from close range.
The goal cranked up the volume and the jeopardy. One flowing Wolves move carved Liverpool open and left Arokodare free, only for the forward to direct his header over the crossbar. At the death, Liverpool leaned on a substitute to preserve the points: Conor Bradley tracked Jhon Arias and slid in decisively as the winger looked certain to convert Jørgen Strand Larsen’s driven cross.
Slot admitted the finale stirred memories of last week’s late wobble at Tottenham. “The last 10 minutes were much better than last week [at Tottenham] but that wasn’t too difficult,” the Liverpool manager said dryly. Improvement or not, the unease told its own story. Liverpool’s attacking patterns — Wirtz floating between lines, Ekitiké stretching the center backs, Frimpong and Kerkez pinning the wide areas — were slick enough to open Wolves repeatedly before the interval. But the hosts again left the door ajar late, especially from dead balls.
Context made the win feel heavier and more human. The Jota tributes bound Anfield and the away end in shared affection, and Liverpool’s players, led by Van Dijk, took obvious care with the family before kickoff. Wirtz’s long-awaited breakthrough arrived on the same afternoon, a personal release set against public remembrance.
For Wolves, the numbers are stark. Eighteen games, no wins; a 16th defeat of the campaign; and now a century-old comparison none of them wanted. Yet their second-half response — front-foot passing, pressure on set pieces, chances in transition — offered Edwards a platform beyond the pain of another Sunday sunk by fine margins.
Liverpool leave with relief and a goalscorer reborn; Wolves leave with records they do not want and a defiance they must keep. On a day defined as much by memory as by the table, that was just enough to separate them.
Scorers: Gravenberch (Liverpool), Wirtz (Liverpool); S. Bueno (Wolves).
Key moments: Frimpong assist for the opener; Wirtz’s first Liverpool goal; Alisson’s line stop before S. Bueno’s rebound; Bradley’s late intervention to deny Arias.
Tribute: Dinis and Duarte Jota led the teams out with Van Dijk; Wolves sang in the 18th minute, Liverpool in the 20th.
What it means: Liverpool grind out a win but remain vulnerable on set pieces; Wolves set an unwanted Premier League record despite a promising second half.
By Ali Musa
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
