Liverpool FC
Wirtz ends Liverpool drought with late concerns over second-half drop-off
Wirtz finally scored for Liverpool, a winner in a 2-1 win, but he urged the team to fix late issues.
Florian Wirtz admitted relief after finally scoring his first Liverpool goal, the second in a narrow 2-1 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers at Anfield. The goal followed a period of adjustment to the Premier League, where the 22-year-old has found the pace and physicality challenging and has not yet been able to dictate play as he did in Germany.
Manager Arne Slot tried Wirtz on the left in search of impact, before briefly dropping him when early form failed to improve. A gradual uptick in performances over recent fixtures culminated in Wirtz breaking his duck against the league’s bottom side. His strike arrived just 89 seconds after Ryan Gravenberch had opened the scoring, putting the champions 2-0 up, although Wolves fought back and made Liverpool work for the three points. The win extended Liverpool’s unbeaten run in the Premier League to six games, a recovery from a sequence that saw the club lose six of seven between late-September and November.
On the pitch after the match Wirtz reflected on the moment and his expectations. “It was very nice, the feeling on the pitch with the fans around,” Wirtz said in a postmatch interview. “I was very happy and I am still, I like it. I was confident that I would score one day but of course I wanted to start scoring and assisting earlier. It was like this, I have to accept it, but I just knew it will come.”
He also urged his teammates to address a dip after the interval. “We played a brilliant first half and I think everyone was working really hard,” he continued of Liverpool’s overall display. “Then in the second half, the last 25 minutes we made it ourselves difficult. I cannot explain why but we have to talk about this at training. We have to change this.
“This is the way we want to do it. We want to be there, on top of the table. It’s not been easy start but in the last games we’re doing better and better. We’re trying to win every game.”
Slot was upbeat about Wirtz’s progression and his growing adaptation to English football. “I think I’m quite sure it was a relief for him, this I could see after his reaction after he scored the goal—and the same I saw with his teammates,” Slot said in his postmatch press conference. “I think they were really happy for him scoring his first goal because in football—rightly so, maybe—we mainly get judged on results and individuals mainly get judged on goals and assists. Sometimes we tend to forget what else there is to do during a game.
“I think he’s had multiple good games for us but I also feel he gets better and better every single game he is playing for us. He gets fitter and fitter and was getting closer and closer to his first goal. Then it was not a surprise to me that he scored one today, but he would probably be the first one to understand that one goal is not enough.
“He will score many more goals for us than only this one, but I also liked his performance during large parts of the game today. I think he was special in a lot of moments.”
Liverpool FC
Rooney Condemns Salah Interview as Terry Says Forward Has Been Scapegoated
Rooney slammed Salah’s comments; John Terry says the forward has been unfairly scapegoated publicly
Wayne Rooney launched a blunt public critique after Mohamed Salah’s recent interview in which the forward criticised Liverpool and manager Arne Slot. Salah’s comments provoked a strong response from a cohort of pundits and former players, while John Terry offered a contrasting defence.
Salah, described in the piece as last season’s Player of the Year, demanded “respect” for his past achievements and said, “I don’t have to go every day fighting for my position because I earned it.” That line was singled out by Rooney on his podcast, who said: “To have the arrogance to say he doesn’t have to earn his place because he has already earned his place, you need to be at your best every week to try and stay in the team.” Rooney added, “If I was one of his teammates, I wouldn’t be happy at all with what he said because this is where Liverpool need him most. If anything, he has thrown Liverpool under the bus with his words.”
Rooney argued that Slot should make an example of Salah by excluding him from the travelling squad for Liverpool’s Champions League clash with Inter. “Arne Slot has to show his authority and pull him in and say, ‘You are not travelling with the team, what you said is not acceptable.’” He warned that the remarks risked undoing much of the forward’s work at the club: “He is absolutely destroying his legacy at Liverpool,” and, “I am sure over the next couple of years he will regret saying what he has.”
John Terry, a former Chelsea teammate, took a different view and said on his TikTok channel: “I think he’d be the first one to say he’s been out of form this season, but I have to agree with him as well. I think he has been made a scapegoat a little bit. I think a lot of Liverpool players, including himself, have been out of form recently.” Terry also warned against leaving Salah out: “And to leave him out—I’m not being funny, if there’s one player that can win you a game, it’s going to be him, so it’s a big call from the manager.”
The interview highlighted Salah’s own claim that he has been “thrown under the bus” and that “that someone wanted me to get all of the blame.” The forward has suffered a marked dip in attacking output and has been criticised for limited defensive contribution. Notably, he started both of Liverpool’s home defeats to Nottingham Forest and PSV Eindhoven before being dropped for the next three matches.
Liverpool FC
Liverpool Players Call for Calm After Two Straight Defeats
Players urged calm after successive defeats saying early-season luck gone and improvement needed so.
Liverpool’s squad have asked supporters for patience after back-to-back losses that followed a bright start to the campaign. The reigning Premier League champions had been fortunate to secure seven successive wins at the beginning of the season, but that run has ended in two difficult outings where their defensive vulnerabilities were exposed.
Fans have expressed concern after the recent displays, and players have been clear in their message: setbacks are part of the sport and response matters. “It’s just part of the game,” said Reds midfielder Jones after the defeat in Istanbul. “I say it all the time, you must be mad if you think you can win every game.
“You’d obviously like to, but the reality is these teams you play are world-class teams and it’s normal if you lose. It’s just how you bounce back. It’s part of it—it’s not fine that we lose but we just have to stay calm and it will all change. Of course it will.”
The tone in the dressing room remained defiant rather than alarmed. Captain Virgil van Dijk also urged composure following European disappointment, pointing out that the team have already shown their title-winning qualities at times this season but must deliver more consistently. “I think we have showed it [our title-winning form] already in many games this season but we haven’t shown it for the full 90 minutes yet unfortunately,” confessed the Liverpool skipper. “It is absolutely normal and nowadays you don’t get the time from the outside world so you have to be strong mentally.
“I am very confident. We have to keep working and sticking together. We had a good start this year in terms of points tally. There shouldn’t be panic, but improvement is needed.”
The immediate focus will be on correcting defensive lapses and finding sharper collective performances as the season progresses. For now, players ask supporters to remain calm and trust that the group will seek a swift response.
Liverpool FC
Slot downplays Alexis Mac Allister concern after Burnley tackle
Slot says Mac Allister felt a tackle, was substituted at half, but is not expected to be sidelined..
Alexis Mac Allister was withdrawn during Liverpool’s 1–0 win over Burnley after a heavy challenge from Ugochukwu, but manager Arne Slot said he is not worried about the midfielder’s availability. Slot explained the substitution was as much about fitness management as the tackle itself.
Slot set out why he chose to remove Mac Allister and how pre-season absence has affected the player’s minutes. “Not tactically, it was a bit of both,” Slot explained. “He missed a lot of pre-season. He is ready for one game a week, maybe 70 to 90 [minutes].
“He played 90 for Argentina and was really tired after 70 so doesn’t have the right buildup to play three games a week, 90 minutes. I was always sure I would take him off after 60 minutes for him to be ready to be back on the pitch on Wednesday and Saturday and I already made one substitution in the first half .
“If I take him off on 60 minutes then I would have to make another one, then if I want to make changes on 75 I can do nothing anymore. That, combined with the tackle that was a tackle that he felt. I’m not surprised by the fact he felt that tackle, by the way.
“It was a combination of both. He said it was fine and good enough to go on although he limped a lot. That’s more his mentality that he could actually perform at his best for 15 minutes longer.”
Goalkeeper Alisson offered a similarly calm assessment. “He’s a very strong man,” Alisson told ESPN . “Nothing’s wrong with him, he was just in a bit of pain. I think he’s fine.”
Slot will hope to have Mac Allister available for Wednesday’s Champions League opener against Atlético Madrid. Record signing Alexander Isak is expected to make his debut for the Reds in that fixture.
