Liverpool came from behind to beat Wolves 3-1 in the early Saturday kickoff of the Premier League with a strong second half performance.
Hwang Hee-chan scored first for the Wolves, and they had several opportunities to add to their advantage in a brilliant first half against the lethargic Reds at Molineux.
However, Liverpool came out strong in the second, and only 10 minutes in, they tied the game thanks to a goal by Cody Gakpo.
Andy Robertson’s tidy finish in the 85th minute was the payoff for Jurgen Klopp’s side pinning Wolves back for lengthy stretches, while Hugo Bueno’s own goal added some gloss to the scoreline.
As the 1400 GMT kickoffs approached, Liverpool had extended their unbeaten streak to four games and were one point clear at the top of the standings.
Klopp felt that his team’s second-half effort warranted a victory, but he emphasized that they could not afford to keep falling behind.
“Turning games around is helpful in a season, but we cannot rely on it, we cannot,” he said to the BBC.
We need to improve our performance, especially in the early halves of games. We are not yet at that point of stability. It’s all too novel.
Wolves, headed by Gary O’Neil, have had trouble finding their footing this season, but they got off to a strong start thanks to Pedro Neto and newcomer Jean-Ricner Bellegarde.
Their early pressure was rewarded when Neto surged down the left, dribbled through the Liverpool defense, and crossed to Hwang, who scored crisply past goalkeeper Alisson Becker at the back post. The high-energy home side were threatening whenever they surged forward, and Liverpool, without Virgil van Dijk (who was banned) and Trent Alexander-Arnold (who was injured), were unable to establish any real control.
However, Wolves’ sharp passing game was not matched by equally impressive finishing, as the team missed many easy scoring chances.
Matheus Cunha, a forward for Brazil, mistimed his leap and missed the best of them following another fantastic play from Neto.
At the close of the first half, Liverpool produced several scoring opportunities that hinted at their offensive prowess.
At halftime, Klopp substituted Luis Diaz with Alexis Mac Allister, an Argentine midfielder, and the Colombian almost tied the game with a header. The German coach was about to substitute Harvey Elliott and Darwin Nunez for Gakpo and Diogo Jota, but Gakpo tied the game with a late goal.
Gakpo scored with a poke in from close range after Mohamed Salah, who had been relatively quiet, collected the ball on the right and swung it across the box.
When Diaz sent Nunez in front of the net, Liverpool’s best opportunity to take the lead was thwarted by Jose Sa.
With five minutes remaining, Robertson pounced on a weak clearance from Sa to give Klopp’s team a 1-0 lead.
The Scottish defender charged forward, exchanged passes with Salah, and scored in close.
In stoppage time, Liverpool scored a third goal when Elliot’s shot was deflected in by Bueno and past Sa.