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Diogo Jota fluidity can spark a suspect Liverpool against Wolves

By Paul Landwehr

BUDAPEST, HUNGARY - FEBRUARY 16: Sadio Mane of Liverpool celebrates with team mates Jordan Henderson and Roberto Firmino after scoring their side's second goal during the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 match between RB Leipzig and Liverpool FC at Puskas Arena on February 16, 2021 in Budapest, Hungary. Liverpool face RB Leipzig at a neutral venue in Budapest behind closed doors after Germany imposed a ban on travellers arriving from the UK in an effort to prevent the spread of Covid-19 variants. (Photo by Laszlo Szirtesi/Getty Images)
BUDAPEST, HUNGARY - FEBRUARY 16: Sadio Mane of Liverpool celebrates with team mates Jordan Henderson and Roberto Firmino after scoring their side's second goal during the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 match between RB Leipzig and Liverpool FC at Puskas Arena on February 16, 2021 in Budapest, Hungary. Liverpool face RB Leipzig at a neutral venue in Budapest behind closed doors after Germany imposed a ban on travellers arriving from the UK in an effort to prevent the spread of Covid-19 variants. (Photo by Laszlo Szirtesi/Getty Images) /
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The Reds return to Premier League action Monday when Jurgen Klopp and Liverpool go on the road to Wolverhampton to face Wolves at Molineux Stadium.

Finding more joy these days away from the hallowed Anfield ground, the Reds will be looking for yet another road win against Wolves to keep a fourth place spot in sight.

Once again coming off a 2-0 victory over Champions League opponent RB Leipzig midweek in Budapest, saw Liverpool eliminate their opponents 4-0 on aggregate, never really being threatened in either match.

Liverpool must use the force

Mo Salah and Sadio Mane found the net once again with second-half strikes a few minutes apart. Now the Reds need to build on that joy, that success, which propelled them into the round of eight, to their Premier League campaign which also needs a much invigorating shot in the arm.

Klopp will be looking to get another solid shift at the back from Nat Philips and Ozan Kabak, whose performances have allowed Fabinho to return to play in his normal midfield no. 6 role, helping a stagnant, and often of late, an unimaginative and uninspired midfield engine room.

The return to the midfield of a healthy Naby Keita has also had a positive effect on the potency of the forward thrust in the final third. The Reds have suffered not so much from bad play overall, or any form that can be readily pinpointed; since they continue to dominate possession and their passing completion rates remain high.

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Liverpool has lost a handful of 1-0 matches where they were the dominant side, box to box for large stretches of those loses. Their finishing has been suspect, and the final pass in the final third has not been clinical enough.

Diogo Jota filled in for an unusually absent Roberto Firmino in Budapest, and brought a creative spark, intensity and purpose to the attack and he looks hungry to press on for a ‘backs to the wall’ rundown in the final third of the Premier League campaign.

Getting on the scoresheet at his old club would give Diogo the confidence he needs returning from injury, to continue in the fine scoring fashion he displayed during the autumn before he was injured at Midtjylland.

It will be interesting to see which team, which shooting boots they bring on in this tie, will we see the Reds that easily dispatched an RB Leipzig side not once, but twice by 2-0 in a little over a fortnight, or the sputtering display of offensive killer instinct which has plagued the offensive forward thrust the entire new year? Which Liverpool will show up here?

If the past is prologue then the Reds will win, having played better on the road since new year in the Premier League. But if the slow grinding box to box lacklustre unimaginative Reds show up again here, it could be a long day at the office for the lads once again.

Wolves are a tough opponent under any circumstance and even more so at Molineux. The Reds will need to bring their ‘game’ here to get the points.

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