Liverpool v West Ham live: Arne Slot’s side seek precious points in Premier League top-five race | OneFootball

(Peter Byrne/PA Wire)

Liverpool will hope to keep up the pace in the race for Champions League qualification as they take on a rejuvenated West Ham side in the thick of a relegation fight.

The hosts just about saw off another struggling side last time out as a 97th-minute winner from Alexis Mac Allister beat Nottingham Forest in a performance that perhaps showed new-found resilience within Arne Slot’s squad. That it required such a late goal illustrated the problems Slot is facing, with Mohamed Salah short of form and goals and growing calls for a bigger role for teenage talent Rio Ngumoha.

That Forest defeat did West Ham a favour, and Nuno Espirito Santo’s side can climb out of the bottom three with victory today for the first time since September. An upturn in form has seen the London club lose just once in their last five league outings, and an upset win would most certainly bolster their survival bid.

Team news - Liverpool

Arne Slot resists the temptation to give young Rio Ngumoha a start in a familiar looking Liverpool team.

Liverpool XI: Alisson; Gomez, Konate, Van Dijk, Kerkez; Szoboszlai, Gravenberch, Mac Allister; Salah, Ekitike, Gakpo.

Harry Latham-Coyle28 February 2026 13:46

Team news on the way...

Righty, then, let’s get going - team news will soon be with us from Anfield, and Liverpool are without Florian Wirtz for certain...

Liverpool boss Arne Slot gives concerning Florian Wirtz injury update

Florian Wirtz pulled out of last week’s match against Nottingham Forest due to a back injury

Harry Latham-Coyle28 February 2026 13:40

This is the most competitive Premier League in years – and that’s very bad news for Spurs

Tottenham’s plight plays in to a wider point, Miguel Delaney argues, about the competitiveness of the Premier League, which has arguably never been greater:

This is the most competitive league in years – and that’s very bad news for Spurs

The Premier League is tighter than it’s been in years – and while that’s already shaken up the title race, the real story could be unfolding at the bottom of the table

Harry Latham-Coyle28 February 2026 13:30

Jarrod Bowen tells teammates to keep stepping up

West Ham captain Jarrod Bowen has also sent an emphatic message to his teammates ahead of a chance to climb out of the bottom three.

“We’ve all got to continue stepping up, that’s the situation that we find ourselves in,” said Bowen. “We know outside noise happens and, I think it’s individually, for one, how you deal with that, but certainly as a group we can take criticism from each other and I think it’s an important time to be criticising each other.

“In the situation that we’re in, we need everyone pointing fingers and people to accept that responsibility, which we’re doing. I think we’ve seen a change certainly in the last few weeks.

“It’s not easy, don’t get me wrong. It’s not easy, and that’s not an excuse, because this is where we find ourselves from what we’ve done at the start of the season, so now we have to fight our way out of it, and we’ve certainly got enough, not just talking about quality, but talking about characters and people who are grabbing each other by the scruff of the neck when times are tough.”

Jarrod Bowen and Nuno Espirito Santo are spearheading West Ham’s survival bid (PA Wire)