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A week after a surprising Premier League stalemate with Brighton and Hove Albion, Liverpool made the trip to West Ham United on Sunday evening. The Reds were desperate to return to winning ways, but getting the better of a high-flying Hammers side was always going to be tricky. In the end, Liverpool came up a little short, losing 3-2 against an exceptional West Ham unit.
The hosts, who were looking to leapfrog Liverpool into third spot in the Premier League table, struck first. A tricky corner from Pablo Fornals forced Liverpool keeper Alisson Becker to come out and try and punch the ball clear. Unfortunately, the Brazilian’s unconvincing effort did more harm than good as he ended up directing the ball to the far corner. Hurt by the goal, Liverpool came hard at West Ham and eventually got the equalizer through Trent Alexander-Arnold.
The Englishman stood over a free-kick and pushed the ball towards Mohamed Salah, who was stationed on his right. The Egyptian stopped it and let Alexander-Arnold have a go at the goal. His curling effort flew in, keeping Lukasz Fabianski rooted to the spot.
20 minutes into the second half, West Ham United struck again, with Fornals taking matters into his own hands. The Spaniard found himself at the end of a swift counter-attack and made no mistake. Eight minutes later, in the 74th minute, the Hammers extended their lead against all odds, with Kurt Zouma thumping home a well-taken corner.
Liverpool substitute Divock Origi gave the visitors a lifeline through a brilliant solo goal. Unfortunately, the strike only served as a consolation for the Anfield unit in the end. The five-goal thriller left Liverpool with their first defeat in 25 games and here we will check which Reds players failed to deliver.
Here are the five underperformers in Liverpool’s 3-2 defeat to West Ham United:
#5 Diogo Jota
Thanks to his tenacity, Diogo Jota has successfully become a vital cog in the Liverpool team. On Sunday, however, the Portuguese did not do enough in front of goal. Jota was successfully contained by the West Ham defense and had zero shots on target.
Jota created a couple of chances when Liverpool were on the up, but they went begging. All in all, it was a forgettable night for the 24-year-old, who would be far from satisfied with his performance.
#4 Virgil van Dijk
Liverpool centre-back Virgil van Dijk was not the worst player on the pitch, but he certainly was not at his best. The Dutchman put in some surefooted challenges, but he did not manage to organize his backline as well as he usually does.
Van Dijk was primarily focused on containing Michail Antonio and he was on the Englishman's case all evening. However, he failed to track Jarrod Bowen and Fornals, which eventually led to West Ham’s second goal.
He was also far from imposing during corners, both offensively and defensively, which hurt the Reds badly.
#3 Andrew Robertson
While Liverpool right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold thrived on his side, Andrew Robertson cut a frustrating figure on the left. With the Scottish international enduring one of his worst matches in the Premier League this season, Liverpool’s left flank was stagnant.
To top it off, several of West Ham United’s attacks came down Robertson's side, with the left-back not posing much of a challenge. The former Hull City defender also created only a single chance, which is abysmal by his sky-high standards.
#2 Sadio Mane
Liverpool’s front three of Diego Jota, Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane are one of the best in the Premier League. But against West Ham United, none of the three forwards were at their best.
Sadio Mane in particular was surprisingly wasteful, with the left-winger squandering two excellent chances to hit the back of the net for Liverpool.
In the 52nd minute, Mane got the chance to put Liverpool ahead but he hit it straight at West Ham keeper Lukasz Fabianski.
Finally, when presented with the opportunity to pull the Reds level in injury time, Mane headed Alexander-Arnold’s free-kick wide from point-blank range.
#1 Alisson Becker
Liverpool's Alisson Becker is one of the best goalkeepers in the world. He is strong, agile, and is an exceptional reader of the game. On Sunday, however, he was nothing but a shadow of his brilliant self, looking clueless and rather ordinary.
West Ham scored thrice against Alisson, the first of which was an own goal. Pablo Fornals swung in an impressive corner in the fourth minute, which drew Alisson out. The keeper misjudged the flight of the ball and was blind-sighted by West Ham centre-back Angelo Ogbonna.
The West Ham defender did not manage to get a touch, but a slight deflection off Alisson put the hosts ahead.
West Ham scored their second through a slick counter-attack. However, a keeper of Alisson’s caliber is expected to do better when the ball is hit almost straight at him. The Brazilian could not manage to cover all his bases and ended up paying the price.
The Hammers then scored their third through another corner, courtesy of Zouma’s impressive header. Alisson was beaten for pace and Liverpool defenders did nothing to help out their keeper.
