West Ham suffered a setback in their quest for Premier League survival as they were defeated 2-1 by Liverpool at the London Stadium.
The Hammers took an early lead when a thunderous Lucas Paqueta strike cannoned into the top corner, but this was quickly cancelled out by a sumptuous long-ranger from Cody Gakpo.
The Irons then fumbled their advantage when an emphatic Joel Matip header secured all three points for Jurgen Klopp’s side.
It was a shame for David Moyes’ men, who failed to build upon their resounding 4-0 victory over Bournemouth in their last top-flight outing or distance themselves from the dreaded drop zone.
However, the East London outfit will struggle to have complaints as they were dominated were large periods of the game. The visitors registered 73% possession and had 20 shots, in comparison to West Ham’s seven.
One player who struggled in the face of this Liverpool ascendency was Aaron Cresswell, who largely failed to meaningfully support any attacks.
How did Cresswell perform against Liverpool?
The left-back excelled in the Bournemouth thumping last weekend and registered an assist for Michail Antonio’s opener.
Sadly, on this occasion, the former Ipswich man was unable to stamp any authority on proceedings.
In the defensive effort, the £50k-per-week full-back failed to make any blocks or tackles and didn't win aerial duels, as per Sofascore, even if Mo Salah was kept 'quiet' on the night as per Malik Ouzia.
In truth, the full-back didn't do too much wrong in the contest but a lack of output perhaps underlines the wider perspective that questions certain weaknesses in his defensive game.
The 33-year-old ranks in the bottom 2% in Europe’s top five leagues among his positional peers for tackles per 90 and the lowest 19% for blocks, as per FBref.
He was unable to combat the effervescent Trent Alexander-Arnold, who shone tremendously in a dual role as right back and inverted full-back.
Conversely, the offensive side of his talent has always been lauded, but this evening it left a lot to be desired. According to Sofascore, Cresswell only recorded a 59% pass completion rate, one key pass, and no successful dribbles, while losing possession a whopping 15 times.
Due to his age and declining form, it would be no surprise if the Hammers' hierarchy decided to ditch the Englishman in the face of an extensive rebuild.
Despite this loss, the Irons still have plenty to play for this season as they have an upcoming Europa Conference League semi-final and still have six crunch games left in the league to mathematically seal their top-flight status for next season.