Liverpool have built on their Premier League win at the weekend by toppling the great Real Madrid thanks to Arne Slot’s tactical masterstroke
Crisis? What crisis? It was the Liverpool of last season that decided to show up to Anfield on Tuesday evening.
The Reds played without fear, almost unshackled, as they went into the clash as the underdogs against their old foes. Liverpool picked up a much needed win over the weekend against Aston Villa, and they built on it against Madrid.
From the opening whistle, Anfield was a cauldron of noise and belief. The Reds – reborn after a torrid month – were ready to reintroduce themselves to Europe’s elite.
The atmosphere hit fever pitch even before the game had kicked-off, as Liverpool fans made their feelings toward Trent Alexander-Arnold unmistakably clear.
And Arne Slot’s side responded on the pitch – they won every challenge, every header, every second ball. La Liga’s runaway leaders were left chasing shadows.
Dominik Szoboszlai was everywhere, he led by example in the middle of the park, while Connor Bradley put in a coming of age performance against Vinicius Jr.
Florian Wirtz, finally starting out on the left, had the time to show why Liverpool splashed the cash on him over the summer.
Liverpool weren’t quite back to their best, they weren’t creating clear cut chance after clear cut chance – but they were thriving on the chaos again.
Liverpool fans felt aggrieved they weren’t awarded a penalty in the first-half – after a controversial handball call on Aurelien Tchouameni.
However, all was forgotten in the second-half, when Szoboszlai’s pearl of a free-kick was met by the head of Alexis Mac Allister – who powered his header past Thibaut Courtois.
The Reds’ tails were up, and Madrid’s Galactico’s wanted the ground to swallow them whole.
There was still time for a Alexander-Arnold to make his homecoming, where he was met with a chorus of boos from all four corners of the stadium.
“Brilliant game of football,” Stephen Warnock reflected on BBC Radio 5 Live.
“Quality all over the pitch. Liverpool wanted it more, they played with a higher tempo.”
It’s might just be a page turned for Slot and his faltering band of multi-million pound stars, but tough tests still wait for Liverpool.