ANALYSIS: FLORIAN WIRTZ VS VAR—THE TACTICAL BREAKDOWN OF LIVERPOOL’S CONTROVERSIAL EQUALIZING GOAL
Florian Wirtz scores a controversial goal, but Harrison Reed’s 30-yard screamer denies Liverpool victory. Read the full analysis.
Florian Wirtz figured he was offside when he scored that hotly debated goal in Liverpool’s wild 2-2 draw with Fulham. Arne Slot’s side had been chasing the game after Harry Wilson put Fulham ahead in the first half, but Wirtz got Liverpool back on level terms just before the hour.
Right after he scored, the linesman’s flag shot up. Wirtz looked offside when Conor Bradley slid the ball through to him. Even the replays seemed to back that up. But after a VAR check, the referee gave the goal.
Wirtz didn’t even celebrate at first. “I was sure it was offside, so I didn’t celebrate. I was happy to score, but honestly, I’d rather have the three points.”
Liverpool almost snatched all three when Cody Gakpo scored four minutes into stoppage time. But then Harrison Reed stepped up, grabbed the ball 30 yards out, and smashed it into the top corner just three minutes later. An absolute rocket.
Wirtz didn’t hide his frustration. “Not satisfied at all. We need points, and we wanted three points today. There’s no easy game in this league.
“We stepped it up in the second half. The intensity was much better. In the first half, our pressing was off, but after halftime, we improved.”
Talking about Reed’s goal, Wirtz just shook his head. “What can you say? It was unbelievable. You can’t save that.
“Normally, shots like that don’t go in. Maybe the actions before could’ve been better. It came from a throw-in, so we need to be sharper.
“We’re in a tough spot—two draws in a row. That’s not what we want. We have to get better, but it’s still a process.”
Arne Slot didn’t try to sugarcoat it. “If it had ended 1-1, I’d still be disappointed, but to be 2-1 up in stoppage time and then concede... it hurts.
“That shot was incredible. At 1-1, we brought Chiesa on to go for the win and then got ourselves ahead, but then we had to defend a long throw.
“We put Gomez on because he’s strong in the air, but they went short instead of long, and then—bang—what a strike.
“It’s not the first time this season we’ve let goals in at the very end. We’ve dropped so many points like this.
“It’s tough. Frustrating, too, that their first real chance went in. That’s happened before. They had another when Alisson was out, and they hit the bar, but apart from that, we kept it pretty tight away from home.
“We didn’t create loads of chances either, to be honest. Right before their first goal, we had a similar chance and almost scored.
“It keeps happening—just not enough. We’ve relied on luck all season, good and bad, and that has to change.
“We need to reach a point where a last-minute shot doesn’t mean we drop points. That’s our focus, but we’re not there yet.
“I liked the second half a lot more than the first. We controlled things, created chances—two disallowed goals, hit the bar, and scored one. That’s what you want, especially with so many attacking players missing.
“Sometimes, these guys deserve a break, but we’re not getting it. In the end, we can only blame ourselves.”
FABRIZIO ROMANO CONFIRMS MLS AND SAUDI INTEREST IN MOHAMED SALAH FOR 2026
Mohamed Salah could leave Liverpool this summer! Discover the Saudi and MLS interest plus the Reds' £26m bid for Charlie Cresswell.
Mohamed Salah’s future at Liverpool is still up in the air. Now, there’s a new club in the mix, while Liverpool is also being linked with a surprise move for a former Leeds United defender who left Elland Road for just £3.8 million.
Liverpool haven’t had the best season, but they’re still battling for a Champions League spot. Right now, they’re sixth in the Premier League, just three points off the top four. It’s always felt like a season of change at Anfield. The club dropped close to £450 million on new players, and a few big names are hitting the tail end of their careers.
Salah, now 33, is easily one of Liverpool’s all-time greats. But let’s be honest, he hasn’t looked himself this season. Even though he’s under contract until 2027, there’s a real chance he could leave this summer.
Fabrizio Romano, who’s usually spot-on with transfer news, just gave an update on Salah. More than one club wants him, and Al-Ittihad, who’ve chased him before, are still interested. On his YouTube channel, Romano said, “Clubs from Saudi Arabia will be back for Mohamed Salah in the summer transfer window. They’re going to be back in conversations. Al-Ittihad could be one of them.”
Al-Ittihad just lost stars like Karim Benzema and N’Golo Kanté. They didn’t have time to bring in another big name in January, even though they signed some good players. You get the sense that they’re still looking for a marquee signing, and Salah’s name keeps coming up.
Romano also mentioned that MLS clubs could try to lure Salah to the US. He said, “I’m told that there could be more Saudi clubs attentive and keen on Mohamed Salah. Let’s also see from the MLS if some club decided to enter the conversation and sign Mohamed Salah from Liverpool.”
He called it “an interesting summer ahead” for the Egyptian winger. So far, there haven’t been any official offers, so Salah stayed at Liverpool. But this summer? Who knows? Things could change fast.
Adding to the drama, Egyptian journalist Ismael Mahmoud says Al-Qadisiyah, another Saudi club, is likely to go after Salah too. So expect this story to keep growing.
On another front, Liverpool just agreed on a £60 million deal for Rennes defender Jeremy Jacquet, who’ll be joining next season. But apparently, they want even more options at the back. Virgil van Dijk is now 34, Ibrahima Konate’s contract runs out soon, and Joe Gomez can’t seem to stay fit. Arne Slot clearly wants to strengthen his defence.
Now, reports say Liverpool are eyeing Toulouse defender Charlie Cresswell. He moved from Leeds for £3.8 million in the summer of 2024. The Reds are supposedly preparing a bid of over €30 million (about £26 million), hoping that’ll be enough to convince Toulouse to sell.
West Ham tried to sign Cresswell back in January, so they might jump back in, and Tottenham, Chelsea, and Brighton are also watching closely.
Cresswell only played 14 times for Leeds, but he’s racked up 56 appearances for Toulouse, with seven goals and four assists – not bad for a centre-back.
STADIUM OF LIGHT STUNNED: VIRGIL VAN DIJK HEADER ENDS SUNDERLAND’S UNBEATEN HOME RECORD
Liverpool ends Sunderland's unbeaten home record: Virgil van Dijk scores as the Reds move closer to Champions League spots.
Arne Slot says he’s not worried about his job depending on Liverpool making the Champions League this spring, but let’s be honest, he’d rather not find out the hard way.
From what we saw here, he probably won’t have to. Liverpool finally snapped Sunderland’s unbeaten home run in the Premier League this season. Now they’re just three points behind Manchester United in fourth and two behind Chelsea in fifth. Things are heating up.
Régis Le Bris’s Sunderland side put up a real fight. They’re smart, well-drilled, and hard to break down. Still, with Florian Wirtz running the show and growing in confidence, Liverpool edged it. Virgil van Dijk’s header from Mo Salah’s corner did the trick. The only sour note for Slot? Wataru Endo picked up a nasty-looking ankle injury.
The game started sslowly Both teams looked pretty cautious, especially with the rain hammering down at the Stadium of Light. No one wanted to make an early mistake, so the first half felt tense and cagey.
Liverpool had plenty of the ball but kept running into Sunderland’s organised defence. Around the half-hour mark, Wirtz finally broke through, taking a pass from Alex Mac Allister, settling himself, and firing from the edge of the box. Robin Roefs saved that one, then breathed a sigh of relief moments later when another Wirtz effort hit the post after Andy Robertson’s cross sliced open the defence.
Wirtz started pulling the strings more and more, and Salah kept giving Reinildo something to worry about. Le Bris had reason to look a bit nervous, but Sunderland weren’t just hanging on. Their attacking movement was tricky and unpredictable, and they stayed right in the contest.
Still, you could tell they missed their captain, Granit Xhaka. He’s usually their heartbeat, but with him out injured, Enzo Le Fée dropped back next to Noah Sadiki in midfield. Le Fée read the game beautifully and broke up attack after attack, just as Wirtz began showing why Slot wanted him from Leverkusen last summer.
Right before halftime, there was a brief VAR check for a possible penalty after Brian Brobbey tangled with Ibrahima Konaté in the box. Stockley Park saw nothing wrong, but Le Bris was clearly annoyed, waving at the referee about a shirt pull.
Maybe that frustration fired Sunderland up. They came out strong after the break, seeing more of the ball and making Liverpool look a bit sluggish. Passing was off, the tempo dropped, but Sunderland couldn’t really test Alisson except for a 25-yard blast from Trai Hume that whistled just wide.
Liverpool held out through a spell of heavy pressure almost as heavy as the rain pouring down outside. Dan Ballard made a crucial block to deny Wirtz, but you could feel a goal coming. And then it did: Salah whipped in a corner, Van Dijk powered in a header, and Habib Diarra helped it over the line.
There was a long delay after that as Endo went down in real pain, his ankle twisted badly. Medical staff gave him treatment, then stretchered him off. Joe Gomez came on to replace him. A rough end to Endo’s first Premier League start of the season.
After that, Konate handled Brobbey’s physical challenge, and Nordi Mukiele wasted Sunderland’s best late chance by firing wide after escaping Robertson. Le Bris threw on all his subs, but with Curtis Jones coming off the bench and helping Liverpool see things out, Slot’s team could finally relax. At the final whistle, they celebrated with hugs, some relief, some joy, and maybe a bit of hope for what’s next.