'We Had to Bring Everything' – Wirtz Admits Fear as Van Dijk Ends Sunderland's 12-Game Fortress; Endo's Horror Injury Casts Shadow Over Top-Four Triumph

 SUNDERLAND, England – The Stadium of Light had become a fortress. Twelve Premier League games unbeaten on home soil. Arsenal had left with a draw. Manchester City were held. Tottenham crushed.
Then Virgil van Dijk jumped.
The Liverpool captain's 61st-minute header did more than secure a 1-0 victory on Wednesday night. It shattered Sunderland's invincibility, revived Liverpool's faltering Champions League push, and prompted an extraordinary admission from the man who came closest to breaking the deadlock .
"We had to bring everything on the pitch to get the win here," Florian Wirtz confessed to TNT Sports after the final whistle. "Everyone knows it is not easy. The first time they have had a defeat at home, and we are really happy to have the three points" .
For a Liverpool side that had won only one of their previous seven league matches in 2026, this was not a triumph of swagger. It was a triumph of survival .
THE GOAL: Diarra's Nightmare, Van Dijk's Redemption
The deadlock arrived via a moment of chaotic precision.
Mohamed Salah's 61st-minute corner—his 12th assist of a season that former France international Frank Lebouef controversially claimed has seen the Egyptian play "like his talent disappeared" —found Van Dijk at the near post . The captain's flicked header ricocheted off Sunderland midfielder Habib Diarra on the goal line, the ball nestling into the roof of the net with cruel inevitability .
For Diarra, it was a moment of personal agony. For Van Dijk, his fourth goal of the season and second in the Premier League represented vindication .
Sunderland manager Regis Le Bris stood motionless on the touchline. His team had not trailed at home in the league since April 2025. The record was gone .
"Each home match in the Premier League is a difficult challenge," Le Bris admitted afterwards, his face betraying the weight of the moment .
WIRTZ: THE POST, THE PROMISE, THE PRAISE
If Van Dijk was the executioner, Wirtz was the architect of near-breakthrough.

The German playmaker, Liverpool's most persistent threat throughout the evening, struck the post with a low drive in the 33rd minute after earlier forcing Robin Roefs into a desperate save . He later saw a header gathered and continued to probe Sunderland's compact defensive block with the patience of a chess grandmaster.
But it was his post-match reflection that revealed the true texture of this contest.

"Every good game gives you confidence. When you get the ball you can sometimes do special things," he said. "It is always good to have these games because you cannot impact every match" .
The compliment to Sunderland was genuine. Liverpool enjoyed nearly 70 per cent possession in the first half yet entered the interval goalless, frustrated by a Black Cats side that conceded just a handful of penalty-area touches before the break .

Yet the victory came at a cost that may prove heavier than three points.

Wataru Endo, making his first league start of the campaign while deputising at right-back, had been one of Liverpool's most effective performers. He won more duels than any other player on the pitch. He contained Sunderland's left flank with disciplined aggression .

Then he landed awkwardly.

The Stadium of Light fell silent as the Japanese international received lengthy treatment. Medical staff administered gas and air. The stretcher emerged. Endo was carried off, applause rippling through all four corners of the ground—a rare moment of unity between visiting supporters and home faithful .
Joe Gomez replaced him in the 69th minute. Arne Slot, already without Conor Bradley, Jeremie Frimpong, and the suspended Dominik Szoboszlai, now faces an anxious wait over a player who had finally earned his trust .
THE TABLE: Three Points, Two Gaps, One Race
The mathematics are now straightforward.

Liverpool's 42 points lift them to sixth, two points behind fifth-placed Chelsea and three adrift of fourth-placed Manchester United . With 12 games remaining and a top-five finish likely sufficient for Champions League qualification, the margin for error remains perilously slim .

Sunderland, meanwhile, remain 11th on 36 points. Their home record is no longer pristine. But the respect Wirtz offered was not performative .

"Very important to us," the German repeated. "We are really happy to have the three points" .
THE SLOT DILEMMA: 'Unacceptable' and Unanswered

Arne Slot had described this as his toughest season "by a mile" following the weekend loss to Manchester City . He had conceded it would be "unacceptable" for Liverpool to miss the Champions League .

Wednesday offered respite but not salvation.
Hugo Ekitike nodded agonisingly wide. Curtis Jones fired over. Salah bent a stoppage-time strike past the post. The second goal never arrived, and Liverpool spent seven minutes of additional time defending their slender advantage with the desperation of a mid-table side rather than the authority of champions .
This was not the Liverpool of old. This was a team learning to win without winning well.WHAT COMES NEXT
The fixtures offer little mercy.

Fulham visit Anfield on February 22. Then come Brighton, Manchester City, and a Merseyside derby that will carry the weight of an entire season .
Sunderland travel to Brentford, seeking to rediscover the resilience that made the Stadium of Light a graveyard for giants .
And Wataru Endo waits. Scans, prognosis, rehabilitation. The unsung hero of a gritty night on Wearside, stretchered off into an uncertain future .
"We had to bring everything," Wirtz said.

Against Sunderland's fortress, they did. Against the remaining 12 games, they must do so again.

And again.
And again