Mohamed Salah on target again as Liverpool edge out Wolves to maintain grip on Premier League title race


  • English
  • Arabic

Liverpool increased their advantage at the top of the Premier League back up to seven points but were given an almighty scare on their way to a 2-1 victory over Wolves on Sunday.

Arne Slot's side were in complete control after a dominant first-half performance that saw Luis Diaz and Mohamed Salah both finding the back of the net, with the Egyptian striker scoring his 28th goal of the season across all competitions.

But Wolves refused to give up without a fight in a second half that saw Brazilian attacker Matheus Cunha pull one back with a wonderful curling finish while the home side, remarkably, failed to register an attempt on goal.

The final whistle was met with delight and relief at Anfield with Liverpool once again opening up a healthy gap on second-placed Arsenal - who defeated Leicester City 2-0 on Saturday - with 13 games to go.

Liverpool had been denied all three points in a frantic Merseyside derby draw at Goodison Park on Wednesday night which ended in high drama after Everton's James Tarkowski scored in the eighth minute of stoppage time.

But there was to be no late chaos this time and captain Virgil van Dijk was pleased with the team's fighting mentality against a Wolves side who will feel frustrated not to have come away with at least a point.

"We'd love to dominate for the full 90 minutes but it is the Premier League and Wolves can punish you and create dangerous moments against you," said the Dutch defender.

"It says a lot we kept fighting and kept going and got the three points.

"Today showed at times that when we have the ball you can exploit it as well. Cunha was a danger man for them today we had to be aware of. Unfortunately he scored but we kept them to that.

"I definitely give them credit the way they went one v one most of the times and how they found the free man between the lines.

"At times we were sloppy as well and we couldn't keep the ball as well as we can at times."

Liverpool had opened the scoring after a lightening breakaway goal that had started with Van Dijk winning the ball deep in his own half before ending up with Diaz scampering down the left wing.

The Colombian then crossed into the box and when Toti Gomes could only loop Salah's pass towards his own goal, Diaz was on hand to beat onrushing Wolves keeper Jose Sa to the ball and send the ball into the net via his stomach in the 15th minute.

It was Diaz's ninth league goal of the season, already his best return in the competition for Liverpool.

Diogo Jota almost doubled their lead less than 10 minutes later only for Emmanuel Agbadou to throw himself in front of his strike to block what looked a certain goal.

Sa was being kept busy in the Wolves goal, first pushing away a low Andrew Robertson cross, with Jota then picking up the loose ball before firing in a shot that the Portuguese keeper saved with his leg.

But the second goal would not be long coming with Diaz again at the centre of it. After forcing an error out of Agbadou, Diaz then skipped past Sa before being clumsily brought down in the box.

Salah stepped up calmness personified to dink the penalty straight down the middle with Sa committed to the dive.

It was Salah's 22nd league goal of the campaign, taking him three clear of Manchester City's Erling Haaland in the race for the Golden Boot.

It was to be an altogether different story in the second half when, apart from a Salah goal being disallowed for offside and a penalty call against Wolves being reversed by VAR, Liverpool offered little attacking threat.

Substitute Marshall Munetsi should have scored a debut goal when put through one-on-one with Allison Becker but shot too close to the Brazilian keeper who saved well.

Joao Gomes curled a glorious chance high and wide - much to the frustration of Cuhna who was free on the edge of the box with the goal at his mercy waiting for a simple pass that never came.

But Cuhna's moment did arrive in the 67th minute when he showed tremendous skill to beat Ryan Gravenberch before sending a stunning curling finish past Alisson.

Sadly for Wolves, that was to be their only goal as they fell to a defeat that leaves them two points and once place outside the relegation zone.

"It's like a mix of sensations," admitted Cunha, who now has 11 goals in the league this season. "We feel good at points today but if we start the game like we did in the second half then we leave with a better result. We need to learn."

Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
The years Ramadan fell in May

1987

1954

1921

1888

Sustainable Development Goals

1. End poverty in all its forms everywhere

2. End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture

3. Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages

4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all

5. Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls

6. Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all

7. Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all

8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all

9. Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation

10. Reduce inequality  within and among countries

11. Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable

12. Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns

13. Take urgent action to combat climate change and its effects

14. Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development

15. Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss

16. Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels

17. Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalise the global partnership for sustainable development

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

COMPANY PROFILE

Name: Rain Management

Year started: 2017

Based: Bahrain

Employees: 100-120

Amount raised: $2.5m from BitMex Ventures and Blockwater. Another $6m raised from MEVP, Coinbase, Vision Ventures, CMT, Jimco and DIFC Fintech Fund

War and the virus
Most sought after workplace benefits in the UAE
  • Flexible work arrangements
  • Pension support
  • Mental well-being assistance
  • Insurance coverage for optical, dental, alternative medicine, cancer screening
  • Financial well-being incentives 
While you're here
The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.

Part three: an affection for classic cars lives on

Read part two: how climate change drove the race for an alternative 

Read part one: how cars came to the UAE

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE. 

Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on

Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins

Read part one: how cars came to the UAE

 

MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW

Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman

Director: Jesse Armstrong

Rating: 3.5/5

Formula One top 10 drivers' standings after Japan

1. Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes 306
2. Sebastian Vettel, Ferrari 247
3. Valtteri Bottas, Mercedes 234
4. Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull 192
5. Kimi Raikkonen, Ferrari 148
6. Max Verstappen, Red Bull 111
7. Sergio Perez, Force India 82
8. Esteban Ocon, Force India 65
9. Carlos Sainz Jr, Toro Rosso 48
10. Nico Hulkenberg, Renault 34

Updated: February 16, 2025, 5:11 PM`