It wasn’t easy, but Liverpool secured a fourth successive Premier League victory on Saturday afternoon, dispatching Wolverhampton Wanderers at Molineux after falling behind in a dismal and disjointed first half.

Jurgen Klopp cut a forlorn figure as Hwang Hee-chan pounced on Pedro Neto’s fizzed cross, firing the ball into Alisson’s chest, who could not prevent the ball from crossing the line.

But an incisive and trademark display of attacking intent after the break, charged by some impactful Klopp substitutions, moved the Reds into pole position in the English top-flight, albeit shortly after champions Manchester City came from behind themselves to win at West Ham United.

Who impressed for Liverpool against Wolves?

From the opening minute of the game, Liverpool looked to be in trouble. Wolves started with swagger, slick in possession and direct in their pressure against a Liverpool side notoriously poor during the early kick-off last term, drawing three and losing three.

And this trend showed little sign of being bucked as Hwang sent the Old Gold into a cacophony of cheer in the seventh minute, with the Merseyside outfit “too timid defensively, too sloppy in possession”, as was said by Liverpool correspondent Neil Jones.

The Reds rebounded with conviction after the break, with Mohamed Salah’s creativity serving Cody Gakpo a goal on a silver platter, before enjoying a one-two with Andy Robertson, who weaved through the area to strike and give Liverpool the late lead.

Harvey Elliott’s deflected strike – going down as an own goal – would confirm Klopp’s side escaped the Midland with three points, and while Salah was the creator once again, it was half-time substitute Luis Diaz who made the marked impact and turned the tide up on his introduction.

How did Luis Diaz perform vs Wolves?

Liverpool toiled last season, finishing fifth in the league and consequently missing out on Champions League qualification, and did so without Diaz for the majority.

The Colombian had impressed for the Anfield side after joining from Portuguese giants Porto for an initial £37m in January 2022 – an anticipated replacement for the soon-to-depart Sadio Mane – racking up four goals and three assists from 11 starts in the 2021/22 Premier League season and scoring in the quarter-final and semi-final en-route to the Champions League finale against Real Madrid.

He would spend the majority of the 2022/23 season out injured, but got back up to speed over the summer after returning in the latter phase last term, and has scored twice across his first five outings.

Against Wolves, the 26-year-old was the “game-changer” as he came on and pumped life and electricity into Liverpool’s attack, as was said by writer Charlotte Coates, who also hailed his “brilliant” display.

As per Sofascore, Diaz would pepper the Wolves goal with three shots, creating two key passes, enjoying 49 touches and making three tackles, imperative in inhibiting Wolves from gaining steam as Liverpool grew into the game.

Ranking among the top 9% of attacking midfielders across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for pass completion and successful take-ons per 90, as per FBref, the £55k-per-week ace will be important across the campaign, and is indeed the ‘game-changer’ that his outfit need to break resolute defences down.

Liverpool are not quite at full gear, but they have rekindled their verve and with stars such as Diaz among the offensive arsenal, there is every possibility that the current campaign will be one of great success.