Liverpool verdict from the London Stadium as Arne Slot's side beat West Ham United 2-0 thanks to goals from Alexander Isak and Cody Gakpo
LONDON, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 30: Arne Slot manager / head coach of Liverpool waves after the Premier League match between West Ham United and Liverpool at London Stadium on November 30, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Izzy Poles - AMA/Getty Images)
Arne Slot waves to the Liverpool supporters who constantly sang his name in the 2-0 win at West Ham United
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That Arne Slot's name was reverberating around the London Stadium as the game entered its 95th minute here felt significant. And as those in the away end continued their appreciation of the Liverpool boss after the full-time whistle, his thumbs up towards them was a similarly important gesture of gratitude for their backing.
It was a message that communicated, unequivocally, that so many are still firmly behind an embattled Slot during the most difficult period of his time in charge.
And from the defensive solidity and willingness to fight, right through to the identity of the first goalscorer here in this 2-0 win against West Ham United, this was exactly what the doctor ordered for Slot after a deeply troubling time.
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It may not stave off the wider debates around his suitability for the job he occupies just yet but, as Steven Gerrard had urged after Wednesday's 4-1 smiting by PSV in the Champions League, the Reds have at least stopped the bleeding. For now.
The challenge for the champions now is to continue putting their best foot forward and get beyond the upcoming festive period with a historically poor run of nine defeats in the previous 12 firmly behind them.
And this deserved victory provided a brief glimpse into the future at Anfield; to a world where Florian Wirtz loads the bullets and Alexander Isak fires the gun. After nearly three months as Liverpool team-mates, supporters finally got to see a snapshot of what they are both capable of in the same team.
They have been made to wait longer than anticipated for both to truly come to the party but this was Wirtz's best performance in the Premier League by some distance on a day when the game was pretty much won by Isak's second-half opener.
Slot couldn't have wished for a more passive opponent but his team were much better here as they went about fixing an unwanted sequence that dates back over two months.
And full credit to the head coach, who, in an effort to end a tough week on a positive note, made the brave calls and necessary changes that got his side in the groove once more. This was not a complete performance that was brimful of swagger or confidence, but they did more than enough to emerge from the capital with the points and the table suddenly looks much rosier.
The title holders entered the weekend in the bottom half for the first time in 11 years at this stage of the campaign and that aforementioned 12-game run was the worst since the early 1950s.
But the decision to recall the flawless Joe Gomez into the problem position of right-back was inspired. The versatile defender didn't put a foot wrong on his first Premier League start for over 11 months, ensuring a safety-first approach was taken at right full-back, which helped out an out-of-sorts Ibrahima Konate no end alongside Virgil van Dijk.
Slot had been reluctant to use his only other senior centre-back from the start given the injury history of Konate but Gomez put down a marker here. He must start as often as possible now while Jeremie Frimpong and Conor Bradley continue to recover from their respective injuries.
The long-serving Londoner may not be able to be thrown into the action every three days given his lack of football and litany of injury problems but when fit and available, that has to be the play now. He helped a beleaguered backline keep just their third clean sheet since mid-September and even popped up with an assist for Cody Gakpo in stoppage time.
The call to give Mohamed Salah a rest paid off too. The Egyptian's removal from the side allowed Liverpool the ability to dominate the central areas with Wirtz, Alexis Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch all impressing alongside tireless workhorse Dominik Szoboszlai, whose excellent campaign rolled on.
What the Reds lacked in threat from wide areas they made up for with comfort in possession with Wirtz, in particular, pulling the strings. The former Bayer Leverkusen man, who was the best player on the pitch, has had a tough time adapting to the ferocity and physicality of English football but a tame Hammers side paid the price for allowing him too much room as he weaved his patterns before being withdrawn for Curtis Jones in the second half.
Wirtz should have done better when he was denied by Alphonse Areola, who had earlier kept out Isak but the Germany playmaker had a big hand in the first goal, playing the pass to Gakpo before his cut-back was calmly dispatched.
Slot conceded recently Isak would be selected in an effort to play through his fitness problems and while he is still obviously someway short of the sort of sharpness that made him a British-record arrival, these afternoons are exactly what the Liverpool boss was talking about.
Having seen his No.9 toil through the opening exchanges, a half-time swap for Hugo Ekitike or Salah would have been the easiest decision in the world for Slot. But his nerve was held and then rewarded with a cool finish that saw Isak cast aside the fitness woes of the last four months or so.
The Sweden international left to a huge ovation from the travelling Kop and now has this moment to use as fuel in his efforts to pay back his monumental £125m transfer fee. There are plenty of hard yards still to be taken but this could be a massive afternoon for the man signed to fire in goals by the boatload over the coming years.
It will undoubtedly be the first of many. Gakpo made the result safe in injury time when he steered home Gomez’s cross and it was a result and display that bore so many hallmarks of last season, en route to the Premier League title.
Liverpool were not at their free-flowing best but a firmer underbelly allowed them to grow into the game and eventually impress their superior quality.
It’s a long way back to those levels more generally but this was an important step in the right direction.