It was the perfect end to a perfect evening.
As Liverpool took a 3-1 lead at Goodison, and as the away game overcame its extensive song list, Andy Robertson hit a pass into the foot of Diogo Jota, a few yards inside the Everton box.
Jota turned his back on goal and defender Allan followed closely. Three seconds and three delicate touches later, the ball was in Jordan Pickford’s net.
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“Sometimes you just have to try things and they happen,” he said later, reflecting on his ninth goal of the season. “I was very pleased to basically kill the game at the time.”
What an impressive signing that the Portuguese international has proved. If the question arose when Liverpool agreed a £45m ($60m) deal with Wolves last September, they’ve been comprehensively answered ever since.
Jota’s record with the Reds is superb; 22 goals in 47 appearances, only 33 of which came from the start.
He overtook Roberto Firmino last season despite missing two months of the campaign through injury, and is level with Sadio Mane this time around. Only Mohamed Salah (obviously) and Jamie Vardy have scored more Premier League goals this season.
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“Excellent player, special boy,” said Jurgen Klopp after last week’s 4-0 win over Southampton in which Jota scored a brace.
“For us, it was the perfect signing because he has everything a Liverpool player in this squad needs.”
Pep Lijnders, Klopp’s assistant, described Jota as “a pressure monster” after his arrival at Anfield, while Kevin Thelwell, sporting director, brought him to Wolves from Atletico Madrid in 2017. , told Goal that he has no doubt that the 24-year-old will make a big impact on Merseyside.
“He’s the ideal man for Liverpool,” said Thelwell, now head of athletics at MLS outfit New York Red Bulls.
“He’s going to come on with the correct mentality. Of course, he’s ambitious and he’s going to really try and get into that starting lineup as soon as he can, but he’s also realistic, and he recognized class and quality already at Liverpool.
“His aim will be to learn and grow from that quality and develop into one of those players on the right track.”
It didn’t take long for him, did it? Liverpool’s forward trio – Salah, Mane and Firmino – were fundamental to the Reds’ success under Klopp, but in 14 months Jota has achieved the unthinkable. He turned the Three Amigos into the Fab Four.
“He is technically skilled, physically skilled and very intelligent and can learn all the tactical tools pretty quickly,” said Klopp.
“And on top of that, he can play all three [attacking] location, very helpful. “
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He’s right there. It is Jota’s versatility and quality that makes him such a valuable asset to Liverpool.
He can replace any of the established trios, or play alongside them, if Klopp wants to change up his preferred 4-3-3 formation.
He’s not as deadly as Salah, but he’s clinical enough. Only four strikers – Hwang Hee-Chan, Jamie Vardy, Danny Ings and Jadon Sancho – have had better shot conversions in the Premier League this season (minimum 400 minutes played) and Jota’s expected number of goals. (xG) is 7.11 just better than Salah and Mane.
He’s not as strong or agile as Mane, but he’s physically fit and game enough.
Only Sergi Canos, Emmanuel Dennis and Leandro Trossard have made more tackles, and Jota has contested more aerial duels this season than Mane, Vardy, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang or Cristiano Ronaldo, to name just one. singular.
And yes, he may not be as smart as Firmino, but he is certainly smart enough. He has created 20 chances for his teammates this season, more than Mane, Ronaldo, Son Heung-min, Vardy or Harry Kane, and won possession in a third of the finals more than any striker. none except Trossard, Michail Antonio or Neal Maupay.
Truly an angry monster.
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Liverpool will need him more than ever in the coming weeks, with a tight December followed by a January in which they will be without both Salah and Mane due to the Africa Cup of Nations. In their absence, he will carry much of the Reds’ scoring burden.
However, that was preceded by a trip to Molineux, where Jota spent three seasons before moving to Liverpool, and where he scored the Reds’ decisive goal in March.
“I remember when I first met him, I thought he could be a player for me,” Klopp said on Friday.
“Because he has been very intense in every situation. Technically he is at a really high level, but he has made the difference with his attitude.
“People can say that he doesn’t score a lot of terrible goals [he netted 44 in 131 games] Wolves are probably the ones with the most aggressive attacking play for wingers. [Raul] Jimenez is allowed to stay, but everyone else has to cover the entire field, and that takes a lot of effort.
“For us, it was clear that he was going to take the next steps with us, and that’s what he did.”
He certainly did. For years we wondered how the hell Liverpool managed to find someone to compete with Salah, Mane and Firmino.
They found their answer at Wolves. Jota is part of the Reds’ future, as is their present.
And if they can sign a few more like him in the coming years, the club will be in dire straits.
