Liverpool legend John Aldridge has blasted the performance of striker Darwin Nunez during the Reds' win over Wolves, which saw them move seven points clear in the Premier League title race.

Coming on as a second-half sub, the Uruguayan didn't make much of an impact. Aldridge says that Nunez actively harmed his side, struggling to hold the ball up and not pressing particularly effectively.

It was the first time since stats began being recorded in 2003 that Liverpool failed to have a shot in the entire second half of a game. "Diogo Jota looked really rusty but he needed a game, and when Nunez came on, I watched him and I didn’t really see him sprint once," Aldridge wrote in his Liverpool ECHO column. "I was so disappointed with him.

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"I swear, I watched him and he was just going through the motions. Now if you’re coming on as a Liverpool player for the last half-hour, you have to show the manager, the team and the fans what it means to you. That you actually want your place.

"He was holding no balls up for us so the balls were coming back into midfield, back on top of us, and we lost out. The front players have to hold the ball in. They have to give everyone a break.

"They have to move but he didn’t move them at all. I was really disappointed with him, I was completely gobsmacked. His performance was not acceptable. In my opinion as a center-forward, he made it harder for Liverpool by not getting involved."

Jota came back into the team to start for the first time in around four months in the Premier League, allowing Luis Diaz to play his best role down the left flank. In turn, Diaz scored and won a penalty and instantly looked much more comfortable than he has down the center of the Liverpool attack.

When he returns from injury, though, Cody Gakpo will also hope to nail down his spot on the left again, which is why Diaz has moved inside in recent matches. Earlier in the season, having two options competing for a place on the left wing was a major advantage for Slot, who always had one top-quality player refreshed and ready to go in that role.

Liverpool.com says: Weirdly, there is a strong case for Nunez starting against Aston Villa midweek given the space that there will be behind Unai Emery's defense. If he does get a chance to start, though, he will need to take it. For every step forward he has taken this season, he has soon been back to square one. Ahead of a big summer, that probably needs to change pretty quickly.