I rarely hand out very low player ratings—but this time, I’m ready to go scorched earth by my standards on the Reds.
Call it bad luck, call it a lack of clinical finishing, call it whatever you want, but with the stats tilted so heavily in Liverpool’s favor, there’s no excuse for this result.
The Reds dominated possession (66–34%), had more shots on target (4–3), and won the corner battle comfortably (11–2), yet still managed to lose to the worst team in the Premier League—all while Arne Slot’s men are desperate to secure Champions League football for next season.
Between structural issues—most notably the manager's continued inability to break down a low block during his time on Merseyside—and a catalogue of miserable individual errors from multiple players, is there anyone in a Liverpool shirt who escapes this match with a respectable rating?
Starting XI:
Alisson Becker- 5/10: He’s made too many individual mistakes lately, with poor distribution costing the team—this time for Wolves’ winner after his earlier gift of a late penalty to Man City.
A wicked deflection denied him a real chance to save it, but his struggles on the ball and off his line are a recurring problem. While the defense shares the blame, conceding twice from just three shots also highlights that the Brazilian may be past his peak.
Virgil van Dijk- 5.5/10: He needed to be stronger against Tolu Arokodare in the buildup to Wolves’ opener, as the forward brushed past the captain with little resistance. He also wasted a late chance to put Liverpool ahead, directing a perfect cross from Rio straight at José Sá. Ultimately, it falls on the captain to keep heads focused late, and yet another conceded late winner this season reflects poorly.
Ibrahima Konate- 5.5/10: The Ibou we’ve seen for much of this season showed up at the worst possible moment, as he was caught completely out of position for Rodrigo Gomes’ opening goal for Wolves. With a team like Wolves, he should have known that while danger might be limited, any promising moment would need to be dealt with—and he failed to do so.
Milos Kerkez- 6/10: He delivered plenty of dangerous in-swinging balls from the left in the first half but faded as the game progressed, leading to his substitution in the 65th minute. After a hot streak in January, his form appears to have cooled off a bit.
Jeremie Frimpong- 6/10: He looked a bit twitchy on defense, and it's understandable that his devastating pace hasn’t fully come back following a return from injury. Still, he failed to make the efficient impact he’s delivered so often this season like he did against West Ham, leading to a substitution in the 72nd minute.
Ryan Gravenberch- 5.5/10: He picked up an early yellow, which kept him on a leash for much of the first half. Ultimately, he was substituted at the break to avoid the risk of a red card—amounting to a forgettable performance after having to operate on such thin ice.
Alexis Mac Allister- 6.5/10: Following a recent run of strong form, Macca wasn’t quite at his best, but he still appeared frequently in the pressing game and put in a solid work rate throughout the evening. He also continues to perform admirably in aerial duels, despite his height.
Dominik Szoboslai- 6/10: Liverpool’s set-piece king was a bit absent from the action today, as Dom failed to produce any standout moments. Like Macca, he showed a respectable work rate, but this wasn’t the performance we’ve come to expect from the engine of the midfield.
Cody Gakpo- 4.5/10: I’m not sure how many more times it needs to be said: Cody Gakpo’s game is painfully one-dimensional, and even the Premier League’s bottom side had little trouble neutralizing him in what may be his worst showing of the campaign.
To make matters worse, he inadvertently cleared a ball that was tantalizingly close to crossing the line for the Reds. He has to be dropped. His substitution in the 65th minute felt not only justified, but overdue.
Mohamed Salah- 6.5/10: For all the criticism aimed at Gakpo, Salah was not much better early on. He eventually capitalized on a gift from a misplaced pass to level the match, his first league goal since November 1, but squandered a huge opportunity moments later by failing to slide a simple pass wide on the ensuing attack. Were it not for his well-taken finish, which should have sparked at least a point if not more, Mo would likely have faced the same level of condemnation as Cody.
Hugo Ekitike- 6/10: The highlight of his evening was undoubtedly his on-ball skill—something that’s been a joy to watch this season—but beyond that, Hugo never really created a clear-cut chance.
The service he received was far from ideal, and he’ll get a bit of a reprieve following his three-goal/assist outing against West Ham. Still, it would have been great to see him conjure something from nothing, as he has on multiple occasions this campaign.
Substitutes:
Curtis Jones- 6.5/10: He was brought on for Gravy at a smart moment following his yellow, as Liverpool additionally needed some offensive spark. The Scouser almost made an immediate impact—if not for being denied by a teammate. After that, he blended a bit into the background, and he’ll understandably be frustrated not to have opened the scoring tonight.
Andrew Robertson- 6/10: Picked up a where Milos left off; was a bit adrift after entering the game.
Rio Ngumoha- 7/10: He came inches from an equalizer in the 78th minute, denied by a brilliant save from José Sá, and should have set up van Dijk late on. However, his lack of urgency in closing down André outweighed those moments a bit.
Still, his attacking output was highly encouraging yet again—and it says a lot that the game’s standout performance to my eyes came from a 17-year-old substitute. If he doesn’t start in Friday’s FA Cup tie, Arne Slot will have serious questions to answer.
Joe Gomez- 5.5/10: He’ll be devastated after his attempted block looped all the way into the net, handing Wolves the win. A cruelly ironic moment, especially since he still hasn’t scored a league goal in his career.
Federico Chiesa- 6/10: Had a decent look at grabbing an equalizer at the death, but not much else to report.