Wolves 1-2 Liverpool: Salah spot-kick sends Reds top of Premier League

Liverpool moved to the top of the Premier League table as Mohamed Salah's penalty handed them a 2-1 victory over Wolves at Molineux.

Manchester City's 1-1 draw at Newcastle United earlier on Saturday handed Arne Slot's Reds a chance to go top, and Salah hit the winner from the spot after Nelson Semedo fouled former Wolves man Diogo Jota.

Ibrahima Konate had nodded Liverpool into the lead before his mistake at the other end allowed Rayan Ait-Nouri to briefly draw Wolves level early in the second half.

Wolves never looked likely to equalise for a second time as their wait for a first win of the season continued, with Liverpool going close to a third goal on a couple of occasions late on.

Wolves kept Liverpool quiet throughout the first half only to see their resolve broken in stoppage time, Sam Johnstone failing to keep out Konate's header after Jota crossed from the left.

Konate went from Liverpool hero to villain as Wolves levelled soon after the restart, though. A mix-up between him and Alisson allowed Jorgen Strand Larsen to steal possession, with his cutback eventually turned home by Ait-Nouri.

But within three minutes of the equaliser, Semedo pulled Jota back to concede a penalty, which Salah confidently dispatched for the winner, with Wolves wilting from then on.

While the result took Liverpool one point clear of City and Arsenal at the summit, Wolves remain rooted to the bottom with just one point from six matches.

Data Debrief: Salah punishes sloppy Wolves

Salah was kept quiet for the most part at Molineux, but there was never any doubt about the outcome when he stepped up for Liverpool's 61st-minute spot-kick. 

Salah now has eight goal involvements in six Premier League games this term (four goals, four assists), a tally only bettered by Erling Haaland and Cole Palmer, who have 10 apiece after the latter scored four first-half goals for Chelsea on Saturday.

The Egyptian has also scored in three successive away games in the competition for the first time since October 2021, when he enjoyed a run of five straight road matches with a goal.

It was Semedo's error that gave Salah the chance to snatch the points from the spot, and since his Premier League debut in September 2020, only Matty Cash (six) has conceded more penalties in the competition than his five.