It may have seemed like a comfortable afternoon for the hosts when Mohamed Salah put Liverpool ahead of West Ham in just the 16th minute of their Premier League match, but it most definitely did not turn out to be at times. Before the break, Jarrod Bowen brought West Ham to within one goal, but the hosts eventually drew away due to a late goal from Darwin Nunez. Lately, Diogo Jota added a third.

During the Premier League game between Liverpool FC and West Ham United at Anfield, Darwin Nunez of Liverpool celebrates scoring the team’s second goal.

At Anfield, Liverpool overcame West Ham United 3-1 with a goal from Darwin Nunez, maintaining their perfect record.Mohamed Salah scored from the spot after being fouled at the conclusion of a great counterattack as Liverpool took the lead against the flow of play.

However, Jarrod Bowen’s diving header for West Ham, which completed a superb team play, brought the score even.Following the half, the two teams exchanged missed opportunities as Nunez hacked wide after Liverpool sprang the offside trap and Bowen headed straight at Alisson after being set up by a superb James Ward-Prowse corner.After Alexis Mac Allister clipped a promising pass into the box, Nunez made amends on the hour mark by acrobatically volleying home, and Diogo Jota scored a late third from a corner.With the win, Liverpool moves up to second place, two points behind Manchester City, who have 16 points. With 10 points, West Ham drops to eighth.

TALKING POINT – DARWIN CONTINUES TO DELIVER

Nunez had at one point in the previous season turned into a running joke, but so far in this one, few people are making fun of the Uruguayan. He was the game-winner here, just like he was at Newcastle, and he’s beginning to justify Liverpool’s high investment in him from last summer.Even though Nunez’s performance on Sunday was far from flawless and featured a major miss, he continued to advance and eventually found himself in a position to score the game-winning goal. Nunez will have a lot of opportunities on a Liverpool squad with a functional midfield, and he has so far this season demonstrated an improved ability to take and convert such opportunities.

PLAYER OF THE MATCH – ALEXIS MAC ALLISTER (LIVERPOOL)

In the middle of the park, a self-assured display. In general, Mac Allister made good use of the ball, but never better than when he helped Nunez score. He contributed significantly to Liverpool’s hegemony in the second half as well. West Ham never made a genuine attempt to come back after falling behind 2-1, and much of that can be attributed to Liverpool’s Mac Allister-led midfield.

PLAYER RATINGS

Liverpool: Alisson 7, Gomez 6, Matip 6, Van Dijk 7, Roberton 6, Szoboszlai 6, Mac Allister 7, Jones 6, Diaz 6, Salah 6, Nunez 7. Subs: Gravenberch 6, Jota 7, Gakpo 6, Endo n/a.West Ham: Areola, Emerson, Aguerd, Zouma, Coufal, Alvarez, Soucek, Ward-Prowse, Paqueta, Bowen, Antonio. Subs: Kudus 5, Fornals 5, Ings n/a.

Matchcast: Full match stats and commentary

MATCH HIGHLIGHTS

SAVE! 6′ – Antonio outmuscles Szoboszlai and West Ham work a crossing opportunity for Paqueta, who lands it on Soucek’s head, but Alisson denies the Czech diving low to his right.

PENALTY TO LIVERPOOL 15′ – Diaz and Nunez launch a brisk counter-attack, the Colombian carries the ball forward and his wayward pass is flicked Salah’s way by Nunez.

Aguerd then trips Salah and it’s a blatant penalty.

GOAL! LIVERPOOL 1-0 WREST HAM (SALAH) 16′ – Salah takes the penalty and smashes it into the net, with Areola diving the wrong way for good measure.

GOAL! LIVERPOOL 1-1 WEST HAM (BOWEN) 42′ – Bowen nods a long ball back to Antonio, who spreads the play wide to Coufal.

When Coufal comes to cross, Bowen makes a nice run across his marker and aims a diving header into the far corner, out of Alisson’s reach but in off the post.

Jarrod Bowen of celebrates after scoring for West Ham at Anfield

Image credit: Getty Images

BIG CHANCE! 55′ – West Ham win a free kick by the corner flag and Ward-Prowse’s delivery is immaculate, but from six yards out Bowen heads down and straight at Allison, who gladly saves.

GOAL! LIVERPOOL 2-1 WEST HAM (NUNEZ) 60′ – Mac Allister plays a hopeful, clipped pass between two defenders and Nunez meets it 12 yards out, acrobatically volleying into the corner! A super finish from the Uruguayan.

GOAL! LIVERPOOL 3-1 WEST HAM (JOTA) 85′ – A Liverpool corner is headed back into the mixer by Van Dijk and Jota diverts into the net.

KEY STATS

In his last five Liverpool games, Nunez has four gaols and two assists. That’s despite twice coming off the bench.Salah has scored or assisted in 12 consecutive home Premier League matches.David Moyes is winless in 21 trips to Anfield as a manager.West Ham have won at Anfield just once in 60 years.