Stat of the Match: Liverpool 2-1 Wolves
Liverpool had a very rare shotless half against Wolves. There is much for Arne Slot to consider ahead of three tough Premier League fixtures.
Liverpool ticked off another match week unscathed by beating Wolverhampton Wanderers 2-1 at Anfield on Sunday. Even two points per game from here to the finish line will see the Reds equal the club’s best Premier League total prior to the arrival of Jürgen Klopp.
This would be a fantastic achievement for Arne Slot. The title will likely follow if 86 points are on the board. This match is unlikely to feature in a post-season dissections of the campaign, whatever the final outcome of the title race proves to be.
The stat of the match for this one is obvious. Liverpool failed to have a shot in a half of league football at Anfield for the first time since records began in 2003. With Wolves dominating the contest while the Reds were drawing a blank, it was no surprise the famous old ground grew nervy in the second half.
The nature of data collection can be strange. Had Mohamed Salah put his shot wide of the goal rather than into it when narrowly offside, a shot would’ve been recorded. It would’ve put an unwanted record to bed, even if Liverpool’s performance would not have been any better.
The second half attacking numbers make for stark reading, shot or no shot. The Reds were offside more times (four) than their combined total of passes (one) and crosses (two) completed into the Wolves’ penalty area. They didn’t muster a single corner or final third free-kick against the worst side in the division for conceding set play goals this season.
Let’s focus on the positives of the first half for a couple of paragraphs. Luis Díaz bundled the ball home to score just the second Liverpool goal converted by an ‘other body part’ in the league or Europe since at least 2017. He followed in the footsteps of, uh, Luis Diáz at Kenilworth Road last season. It’s time for Opta to start differentiating between shoulders and groins; we clearly need the data, people.
With the Colombian the top scorer of opening goals for the Reds this season, it was inevitable that Salah would be the next to net. If he were only allowed to count the second Liverpool goals of games that he has bagged, the 32-year-old would still be the squad’s joint-top scorer this season.
Salah’s 16th ‘second goal’ of 2024/25 came from the spot. It was the 50th penalty of his Liverpool career, the 42nd to be converted. The Egyptian king has varied his placement superbly over the years, never putting more than two consecutive spot kicks into the same sixth of the goal. Salah went for high centre in this match, giving Jose Sa less than no chance of making a save.
Aside from having to withdraw Ibrahima Konaté due to him committing a foul after being booked – which appears to be the limit referees will tolerate before issuing a red card – the first half went well for Liverpool. While what unfolded thereafter was not great, it’s worth putting into context.
Prior to this, the Reds had won 111 of the 117 Premier League games in which they led 2-0 at the break. Just two of the exceptions occurred at Anfield. If you had known this when Mateus Cunha halved the deficit, would it have made you feel better or worse? Is your glass 111/117ths full or 6/117ths empty?
The Brazilian’s strike was sublime, hit from the sort of area from which you’d feel happy seeing an opponent shoot. Per FBRef, Cunha’s goal was struck 27 yards from goal, the furthest out of any Liverpool have conceded under Slot. Long-range strikes have proven problematic for the Reds this term; four of the six from at least 17 yards were conceded at 0-0, including three in matches which they failed to win.
The second half numbers make for remarkable reading, as Wolves had 10 unanswered shots. Over half of their expected goal tally occurred through just one of them, though, with Alisson Becker saving from Marshall Munetsi when the visitors’ substitute was clean through.
In the 46 minutes which followed that chance, Wolves had eight shots collectively worth just 0.39 expected goals. There was almost half an hour in which the scoreline was 2-1, with the visitors mustering just three goal attempts in that time, with just one in the penalty box. The Old Gold couldn’t turn their dominance into much in terms of output.
As Liverpool analyst/podcaster Dan Kennett noted, “if the biggest problem you have as a team is conceding lots of shots when 2-0 up then it's a pretty minor issue.” Understat’s data can illustrates his point. Liverpool have conceded an average of 14.8 shots per 90 minutes when at least two goals up, almost double what they allow when tied (7.6). The notable aspect of the breakdown is that this game state accounts for 15 per cent of the time played by the Reds, but 25 per cent of the xG conceded. If it is harming the defensive expected goal numbers, it is doing so from a position of Liverpudlian power.
Were it not for a sharp intervention from Jarell Quansah in the 87th minute, the visitors’ shot and xG figures would have been higher. If the following explanation for their decent performances is too basic, it is notable that both he and fellow substitute Wataru Endō did well after not featuring at Everton in midweek. At some point soon, the understudies in the squad may have to start a big match, such is the intensity in which games are played at this time of year.
Commentating on Match of the Day 2, Steve Wilson noted that Liverpool had won just six of their 12 matches prior to the visit of Wolves. As true as that is, they had won 23 of their 27 prior to the start of that run. No team can sustain that.
Plus assuming that an FA Cup fourth round tie is very low down the list of priorities, the Reds were a 98th minute equaliser at Goodison Park away from having won their previous six matches of true importance. Title races are about the holding of nerve when form may fluctuate. Liverpool are doing well at this; how are you feeling?
Was it a terrible second half? Were we worrying unnecessarily? Title chases bring anxiety - if Liverpool were eighth, that exact same game wouldn't feel bad at all, because who would really care? Onto Villa....
How did you like Aït-Nouri‘s performance in this game?
Really came alive second half, but did not make a single pass attempt into the box, no successful open play crosses and had no shots. And that even though he was mainly deployed as LM/LW.