Liverpool Vs West Ham: Set-piece surge secures five-star win
Liverpool’s dominant evening over West Ham —liverpool vs west ham— was defined by set pieces, a run that has remade their season and pushed Arne Slot’s side toward their minimum objective of Champions League qualification. The win left Liverpool fifth in the Premier League, three points off third, and pointed to rapid improvement after a turbulent campaign.
Liverpool Vs West Ham set-pieces
At 3-0 up in the first half of a 5-2 victory over West Ham, Liverpool had scored seven straight goals from set-pieces in the Premier League, a run the context says is the longest in competition history. Since the turn of the year Liverpool have scored more goals from set-pieces (excluding penalties) than any other side in the league; in 2026 they have also scored more set-piece goals than any other team in the division, excluding penalties. Seven of Liverpool's most recent nine Premier League goals have come from set-pieces (5 x corner, 1 x direct free-kick, 1 x throw-in), one more than in their first 38 goals of the season. All three of Liverpool's goals in the first half against West Ham came from corners.
How the goals unfolded
Hugo Ekitiké opened the scoring after El Hadji Malick Diouf had cleared the first corner; Ryan Gravenberch returned a fine ball into the France international, who took his shot early and saw it nestle into Mads Hermansen’s bottom corner a slight deflection off Konstantinos Mavropanos. The second arrived when Virgil van Dijk headed home Dominik Szoboszlai’s delivery after bumping aside Soungoutou Magassa and beating Tomas Soucek to the ball — Van Dijk’s second set-piece goal in three games and the team’s seventh of the year. The third, a 43rd-minute volley by Alexis Mac Allister that extinguished West Ham’s hope, began with a corner from Mohamed Salah; Van Dijk flicked on at the near post, Ekitiké cushioned the ball out to Mac Allister and he volleyed into the roof of the net the head of Aaron Wan-Bissaka. The ball did not touch the ground from the moment it left Salah’s foot. The scoreboard finished 5-2 in Liverpool’s favour.
Defensive lapses and chances
West Ham had moments of pressure. Mateus Fernandes and Crysencio Summerville were to the fore as Liverpool were opened up frequently and the visitors at times had the better expected-goals numbers, but could not find a finishing touch. Konstantinos Mavropanos scooped wildly over when a Jarrod Bowen corner landed at his feet. Alisson produced saves from Tomas Soucek and from Bowen after the goalkeeper had hit a clearance straight at the visiting captain. The hosts’ set-piece efficiency, and West Ham’s failure to react to second-phase situations, were repeatedly decisive.
Context off the pitch
The match exposed a sharp contrast in club finances highlighted by the same week’s figures: Liverpool announced record overall revenue of £703m in their latest accounts, while West Ham warned players will have to be sold this summer whether they stay up or not after suffering a £104. 2m loss in the same financial year. Practical problems compounded the day for West Ham when their bus got stuck on a ramp while attempting to leave the team hotel.
Coaching, injuries and reactions
Arne Slot acknowledged the nerves in the stadium: "I could feel the nervousness inside the stadium, " and stressed set pieces have been decisive: "It's very pleasing because firstly that is the reason we have won, " adding that Liverpool had been better even in some losses and that the first half of the season saw almost every set-piece they conceded go in, while now they start scoring from set-pieces and things look brighter. Slot has also admitted it would not be an acceptable season if the reigning champions did not qualify for the Champions League. Liverpool have now lost just twice in their past 21 matches in all competitions and have won four of five Premier League games in a short space of time, as many wins as they managed in their previous 13 (D6 L3).
