12/29/24 at London Stadium

On December 29th, the Reds made the trip down to London for the second time in a week. This instance however, was against the Hammers, who currently sit 13th in the Premier League. The last tie between the clubs came in late September in the Carabao Cup, and it didn’t end up being a fun day for West Ham fans. It ended in a lopsided way, five to one, in Liverpool’s favor. Unfortunately for West Ham, this match, if any thought possible, went reasonably worse. The score ended five to nil, and Liverpool was all smiles leaving the capital city yet again.

Liverpool began with their usual starters for the most part. Gakpo, Díaz, and Salah lead the line. Jones, Mac Allister, and Gravenberch held up the middle. Robertson, Van Dijk, Gomez, and Alexander-Arnold filled out the defense. And Allison Becker stood in goal. The only exceptions in the lineup were for the injured Ibrahima Konaté, and the suspended Dominik Szoboszlai.

As for the Hammers, they began with Bowen, Emerson, and Kudus up top. Soler, Alvarez, and Paqueta through the middle, and Wan-Bissaka, Kilman, Mavropanos, and Coufal in the back. Finally, Alphonse Areola was back in net for the second straight premier league game.

The Reds began their game as they usually do. Minutes going by asking yourself how they haven’t scored. This time around, it was because of the man in goal for West Ham. Areola made crucial save after crucial save. One from Salah in the sixth minute, from Jones in the 16th minute, and finally from Díaz in the 23rd. Liverpool could not find a way through, despite their precision in the build-up. Nevertheless, even the most diehard West Ham fan would admit something was brewing. And brew it did in the 30th minute. Luis Díaz broke the spell after a nice bit of luck sliding past the defense. The score was now one to nil.

To finish out the half, it got much worse for West Ham. Putting it nicely, the Reds motto for the remainder was coined “bad things come in threes”. Thus it became three faster than you could blink, mostly coming from the brilliance of the Egyptian King. Salah turned a West Ham defender, and put the ball on a platter for Cody Gakpo, nutmegging the center backs in the process. Gakpo made it two in the 40th and Mo was not yet finished. Curtis Jones found Liverpool’s right winger in the 44th, leading to a curler into the bottom right corner. Half-time came shortly after, and I wouldn’t have been surprised if every West Ham fan had left the building. It would have taken nothing short of a miracle to turn this one around.

The half began once again with a couple of substitutions, being Todibo and Füllkrug from the Hammers. Something had to change for them. Liverpool on the other hand, came out as they started. And their way of play did not suffer one bit. The Reds patiently waited for openings again and again, tiring out West Ham defenders in the process. And although they were hanging on by their fingertips, they were still hanging. This until another bit of luck fell Liverpool’s way in the 54th minute. After swinging the ball around the top of the box, it fell to Alexander-Arnold’s feet, and he decided to belt one towards goal. It ended up finding the back of the net after a huge deflection off Kilman. Areola could only helplessly watch the ball enter the net. Ultimately, Ryan Gravenberch picked up the assist.

The rest of the game saw West Ham pick up their play. But it was too little too late. The score was four to nil, and Liverpool was able to take their foot off the gas. Mohamed Kudus, however, remained a bright spot for the Hammers, as he consistently caused the Red’s defense trouble throughout the game. However, hitting the woodwork twice was not going to cut it against the club atop the Premier League table.

As we’ve seen from the Reds this season, slightly taking their foot off the gas doesn’t mean much. Their counterattacking prowess, can be utilized in an instant. This time, coming from their go-to man once again. In the 83rd minute, Salah picked up the ball just before midfield, and carried it all the way to West Ham’s box. He turned defenders inside out like he was playing against a youth squad. Then, a simple pass to Diogo Jota, marking his fourth goal of the Premier League season, and Liverpool’s fifth of the night.

In the end, the Reds picked up their 14th win in the Premier League, and increased their point tally to 45 going into the new year. Arne Slot continues to exceed the expectations of being a new manager in arguably the best league in the world. And now, they wait for their rivals in Manchester to arrive at Anfield on January 5th.