Liverpool ended their three-game losing streak with a 2-0 win over West Ham United on Sunday, with Arne Slot taking a big selection risk in the process
Abbie Meehan Sports Writer U-35s and Neil Docking
07:45, 02 Dec 2025Updated 07:45, 02 Dec 2025
Arne Slot took a risk with his Liverpool selection against West Ham
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Arne Slot took a risk with his Liverpool selection against West Ham
Liverpool finally broke their three-match losing streak with a 2-0 triumph over West Ham on Sunday.
The Reds secured their first win since early November, thanks to goals from Alexander Isak and Cody Gakpo, but are still slumped eighth place in the Premier League table. Isak netted his first league goal for Liverpool in the 60th minute. A last-gasp goal from Gakpo in the 92nd minute ensured all three points were bagged, with West Ham's Lucas Paqueta seeing red towards the match's conclusion.
The Reds now face a challenging home fixture against high-flying Sunderland and an away journey to Leeds United. Manager Arne Slot is hopeful his team can learn from their poor form and continue their ascent up the table, both domestically and in Europe, with the January transfer window on the horizon. Here's all the latest news from Anfield.
Arne Slot dismisses Wirtz advice
Florian Wirtz impressed for Liverpool in the win over West Ham
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Florian Wirtz impressed for Liverpool in the win over West Ham
Arne Slot disregarded the performance staff's recommendation to keep Florian Wirtz benched ahead of the Reds' 2-0 victory over West Ham, reports the Mirror.
The midfielder arguably delivered his finest performance in a Liverpool jersey yet, collaborating with Ryan Gravenberch, Dominik Szoboszlai and Alexis Mac Allister to generate opportunities for the attacking line.
Slot disclosed his coaching team had recommended against fielding Wirtz from the start given his recent injury layoff, but the manager chose to include the German regardless.
Following the match, the Dutchman commented: "After a very positive performance from Florian, I can acknowledge that but I also want to emphasise the team performance was much better.
Florian Wirtz of Liverpool controls the ball during the Premier League match between West Ham United and Liverpool at London Stadium on November 30, 2025 in London, England.
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Florian Wirtz had a great game against West Ham(Image: Alex Pantling/Getty Images)
"We tried to create an extra midfielder and he was very important for us to find that extra midfielder every time. He was good when he made a dribble, he was good with his one-touch passes.
"He played one ball to Cody, which then doesn't lead to a shot, but we had many of those moments and he was part of many of them.
"Performance staff were constantly telling me 'he needs to go out' because he'd be out for one-and-a-half weeks and had only trained once, so to a certain extent it was maybe a bit of a risk to keep him in the team.
"But some situations ask for an exception, and today was one of them."
Virgil van Dijk's candid confession
Virgil van Dijk of Liverpool
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Virgil van Dijk of Liverpool(Image: Molly Darlington/Getty Images)
Virgil van Dijk concedes there's "no point" in Liverpool examining the Premier League table at this stage following their victory over West Ham.
The skipper has confirmed the team avoided checking the standings during last season's title pursuit and will maintain that approach this campaign after enduring a disappointing spell, saying they should not change their approach.
Van Dijk said: "There's no point for us to look at any table, we didn't do it last year and we shouldn't do it now either. The only thing we should look at is trying to find consistency in the way we play, defend and attack. It was a good win and now we move on."
Speaking about the character of the victory, the centre-back continued: "It was an important win. We are pleased to keep a clean sheet but I don't think there was extra determination needed in the situation that we were in.
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"Criticism is part of the game, so that's what the guys who give criticism get paid for, we just have to deal with what we can control, and that's playing football on the pitch. We won, that's about it.
"Now we focus on Wednesday [at home to Sunderland], on what will be a very hard, tough game that we will be ready for."