Arne Slot is "still learning" about his Liverpool players day by day as they prepare for Saturday's Premier League clash with Wolves at Molineux.
The Reds suffered a shock 1-0 home loss to Nottingham Forest earlier this month, but they have otherwise impressed with four wins from five.
Add an away win at AC Milan in the Champions League into the mix and Slot has made a near seamless start since succeeding Jurgen Klopp.
The Dutchman has been pleased with the mentality of his players, who he is still getting to know in the early stages of his tenure.
"Before the [Bournemouth] game I actually told the players that I am still learning from them day by day," he told the club website.
"I had already seen their reaction to the defeat against Nottingham Forest and this was very positive, but reacting to a big win against one of Europe’s most historical clubs is also a test in its own way.
"We had faced a similar situation after beating Manchester United and we followed that up with the loss to Forest so it was very pleasing to see us cope with these kind of challenges the way we did."
Liverpool are second in the Premier League with 12 points from five matches, while Saturday's opponents Wolves are bottom with one point.
The pressure is growing on boss Gary O'Neil following a fourth defeat in five outings at the hands of Aston Villa last weekend.
Not helped by news of defender Yerson Mosquera being ruled out for the season, Wolves now face a daunting test against Liverpool.
And O'Neil wants to see his players put on a fighting display in order to claw themselves off the foot of the table.
"We're not going to dominate games against Aston Villa and Liverpool," he said.
"We need to behave and act like a team scrapping for everything. We have to make sure we are better when it gets tough."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Wolves - Matheus Cunha
Cunha gave Wolves a lead they squandered against Villa last time out for his second goal in five Premier League appearances this season.
Indeed, eight of his past 13 goals have either put his side ahead (twice) or drawn them level (six times), while his 21 goal involvements since the start of 2023-24 is the most of any Wolves player in the Premier League.
Liverpool - Luis Diaz
Diaz has hit a rich patch of form for Liverpool, having scored five goals and assisted another in his last four Premier League appearances.
That includes a multiple-goal haul in two of his last three games, which is one more than he managed across his first 69 games in the competition.
MATCH PREDICTION - LIVERPOOL WIN
Wolves head into this contest badly out of form and have lost more Premier League games against Liverpool than they have any other opponent (16).
In fact, they have lost 14 of their past 15 such encounters, the exception being a 3-0 home win in February 2023.
Liverpool have kept a clean sheet in 65 per cent of their Premier League games against Wolves (13/20) and will fancy their chances of registering another shutout this weekend.
The Reds have kept a clean sheet in five of their past six league games stretching back into last season, which follows a run of conceding in each of their previous 10.
The opposite is true for Wolves as they are on the joint-longest run without a clean sheet in the division, failing to keep out the opposition in each of their past 17 top-flight games, level with Southampton.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Wolves - 15.4%
Liverpool - 65.6%
Draw - 19%
Saint Lucia, Haiti stay perfect in Groups B and C of League B
Saint Lucia and Haiti consolidated their leads atop their respective Concacaf Nations League groups following contrasting wins in their League B encounters on Friday.
Caniggia Elva’s late brace in the 76th and 90th propelled St Lucia to a 2-1 win over Saint Martin, who led for most of the contest courtesy of Axel Raga’s 30th-minute strike in their Group B clash at the Darren Sammy Ground.
The win moved Saint Lucia to maximum nine points from three games. Curacao and Grenada, who played out a goalless stalemate in the other group contest, sit second and third on four points each, while Saint Martin is still yet to get on the board.
Over in Group C, Haiti beat host Aruba 3-1 at Guillermo Prospero Trinidad Stadion.
Tyron Perret Gentil fired Aruba in front in the sixth minute, but Haiti responded through Frantzdy Pierrot (31st), and a brace from Duckens Nazon, who scored from the penalty spot in the 38th, followed by a 61st-minute close range effort.
The win saw Haiti move up to nine points from three games, three points ahead of Sint Maarten, who clipped Puerto Rico 3-2 in the other fixture.
Chovanie Amatkarijo (44th, 85th) and Imar Kort (49th) got the job done for Sint Maarten, while Rodolfo Sulia (2nd) and Alec Diaz (90+5) got Puerto Rico’s goals.
Puerto Rico remain on three points, with Aruba still pointless.
Saka and Jones withdraw from England's Nations League squad
England have confirmed that Arsenal's Bukayo Saka and Liverpool's Curtis Jones have withdrawn from the squad ahead of their Nations League clash with Finland on Sunday.
Saka was replaced by Noni Madueke in the 51st minute during England's shock 2-1 defeat to Greece at Wembley on Thursday after picking up an injury in his right leg.
It only adds to Mikel Arteta's injury worries ahead of facing Bournemouth next Saturday after Martin Odegaard was injured on international duty for Norway last month.
Saka has enjoyed a fine start to the Premier League campaign, scoring two goals and laying on a further seven assists in the Gunners' opening seven games.
The England international has also created more chances (27) than any other player in the division, with his nine goal involvements a total only bettered by Chelsea's Cole Palmer (11) and Manchester City's Erling Haaland (10).
Lee Carsley will also be without uncapped Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones, who was added to the Three Lions squad earlier this week, but has since withdrawn due to a personal commitment.
Jones earned his first call-up in May as part of Gareth Southgate's provisional 33-man squad for Euro 2024, but did not make the final cut.
The 23-year-old was part of the Young Lions side that won the 2023 European Under-21 Championship under Carsley, scoring the only goal in their 1-0 win over Spain in the final.
Former Liverpool defender Matip confirms retirement after Anfield exit
Former Liverpool defender Joel Matip has confirmed his retirement from professional football.
Matip, who joined Liverpool on a free transfer in 2016, has been without a club since leaving Anfield at the end of last season and has since decided to call time on his 15-year career.
The 33-year-old started out at Schalke, making 258 appearances for the Bundesliga outfit and helping them lift the DFB-Pokal and German Super Cup in 2011.
Matip was among the first signings made by Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool, joining in the same window as Sadio Mane, Georginio Wijnaldum and Loris Karius.
He helped the Reds return to the Champions League in Klopp's first full campaign in charge, making 29 Premier League appearances and keeping nine clean sheets.
However, his spell with the Reds was marred by repetitive injuries, sustaining 16 different issues across his eight-year spell on Merseyside.
The former Cameroon international's final appearance for Liverpool came in a 4-3 win over Fulham in December 2023 after suffering an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury in the same game.
Matip made 201 appearances for Liverpool in all competitions, scoring 11 goals and winning six major honours, which included the Reds' sixth Champions League triumph.
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