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Slot it in: It’s never too late for Liverpool
Liverpool secured a thrilling late win against Atletico Madrid, continuing their trend of scoring crucial goals in stoppage time in the Champions League.
Kolkata: When four minutes of additional time was announced, Anfield roared. They knew. “When there is time, there is hope,” said the commentator on television. He knew too.
All night Robin Le Normand had tried to prevent Virgil van Dijk from getting to the end of corner-kicks. Till 1.40 minutes into second-half stoppage time on Wednesday, the Atletico Madrid and Spain central defender had mostly managed to do that. And then he couldn’t. When Van Dijk jumped and met Dominik Szoboszlai’s inswinging delivery with a nod, it continued the trend of Liverpool winning through late goals.
The only team in Premier League history to have won four consecutive matches with goals in the final 10 minutes have carried the habit to Europe. On the day Liverpool head coach Arne Slot turned 47. And in a match where Liverpool scored two goals in six minutes, their fastest ever in the Champions League.
Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid do not go down easy and they showed that again through Marcos Llorente’s goals late in each half. At 3-2, Llorente had found Alexander Sørloth with a lovely ball but the resultant header was too close to Alisson.
It did not start that way. Andy Robertson knew little about his second Champions League goal but in the fourth minute, Liverpool were ahead when Mo Salah’s free-kick, for a foul on Ryan Gravenberch by Clément Lenglet, went in grazing the left-back who looked to be getting out of the way.
The first may have been a fluke but the second was fantastic. Liverpool were moving the ball around when Ibrahima Konate found Salah. What happened thereafter was typical Liverpool, typical Salah, but knowing is not the same as preventing it. Salah cut in, played to Gravenberch and powered in to meet the return pass even though Conor Gallagher, Javi Galan and Nico González were in the way. It was the Egyptian’s 250th goal in English football and third in five club games this term.
Salah nearly capped Liverpool’s 20th minute tribute to Diogo Jota with a goal. By then though, the visitors had settled down. Giuliano Simeone was working the right flank, Antoine Griezmann drifting wide on the left and Giacomo Raspadori had tested Alisson. Atletico Madrid were forcing corner-kicks but the final ball was conspicuous by its absence. Like Julian Alvarez.
But they kept probing and at 45+2, Llorente halved the deficit with a toe-poke. The equaliser in the 81st minute, off a volley which took a deflection, was the second time that Llorente, who began as right-back but moved into the midfield, had scored twice at Anfield. In between, Raspadori had forced Alisson into a save.
Like against Bournemouth and Newcastle, Liverpool had given away a two-goal lead. Like in those matches –and against Arsenal and Burnley – they ended with a win. “They have got something at the moment that we (Manchester United) had and what Manchester City have had. Teams that win leagues have it: that mentality,” Gary Neville said on Sky Sports Gary Neville Podcast.
Salah’s penalty (90+5) at Burnley came after an unlucky handball from Hannibal Mejbri and Federico Chiesa’s 88th minute goal against Bournemouth happened after the ball fell favourably. But Szoboszlai’s 83rd minute free kick that beat Arsenal, the interplay of passes culminating in Rio Ngumoha’s 100th minute goal at Newcastle and Van Dijk’s header were also proof of how good and relentless Liverpool could be.
All five late goals also highlight calm under pressure. If Liverpool had shown that on Wednesday, the match would have been over as a contest by the 65th minute when Salah’s shot banged into the upright. It was an excellent counter-attack involving Florian Wirtz, Szoboszlai, Hugo Ekitike and Salah. The quartet was at it again but Ekitike couldn’t get on top of the bounce.
Late in the first half, new signings Wirtz, Alexander Isak and Jeremie Frimpong opened Atletico Madrid’s defence and late in the second, Konate and Ekitike came close with headers. “Everyone will talk about the late goal because it is the ‘story’ of the game, like the last four games … (But) We are so fit that we are able to push one more time,” said Slot after the match.
“There will be games where we create so many chances and we don’t need stoppage time to get a late winner, and there will be games where we need a goal in the last minute and we don’t get it.”
Late goals are synonymous with a man born moments before 1941 slipped into 1942, so much so that it led to “Fergie Time” being coined, but an Opta study has found that Liverpool have the most winning goals (47) after 90+ minutes in Premier League. Manchester United are third, way behind in 33, one less than Arsenal.
