Diogo Jota and Cody Gakpo each scored twice, and Mohamed Salah added another goal, effectively overwhelming the Hammers, despite Liverpool initially going behind due to a 21st-minute own goal by Jarell Quansah.
However, Quansah’s own goal underscored a concern regarding Liverpool's performance. Although it wasn’t entirely the player's fault, the chaotic nature of the goal likely worried supporters, even if they quickly moved past it in light of the subsequent goals.
This wasn’t the only chance for West Ham during the match. At times, the center-back pairing of Quansah and Joe Gomez struggled to contain the Hammers’ attack, with Quansah making his first appearance since the opening day of the Premier League and Gomez getting his first start of the season.
West Ham registered 12 shots throughout the game, with seven occurring in the second half, and they had 33 touches in the opposition box compared to Liverpool's 36.
Former player Jamie Redknapp expressed concern about Liverpool's defensive stability following the departure of Virgil van Dijk.
The game truly slipped away from West Ham when Salah scored to make it 3-1 in the 74th minute, shortly before Edson Alvarez received a red card.
Sky Sports pundit and former England midfielder Jamie Redknapp feels this match highlighted what life could look like for Liverpool once Virgil van Dijk departs, as the Reds appeared somewhat disoriented at times around their own penalty area.
“You could see a little bit of what life is like when Virgil Van Dijk’s not there as well,” Redknapp noted (via BBC Sport). “Gomez and Quansah probably haven’t played a lot of football together; it was a bit chaotic at times.
“They were managing to keep the ball out the goal; Antonio was making a bit of a difference, being a handful.
“Once the sending off comes, it just changes everything.”
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