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LIV vs LEV
UEFA Champions League
Anfield, Liverpool
Liverpool
vs
Bayer Leverkusen
4
FT
0
Action
Lineups
All
Facts Only
All
Full-Time: 4 - 0
That wraps things up from this one, but thanks for joining us on Tribe. This is Ryan Nixon (@NewYorkNixon) signing off.
Leverkusen are back at home in their next Champions League clash, and will be wanting to bounce back against Salzburg to try and return back into the top eight, while Liverpool will have another big Anfield night as they host Real Madrid. That game, with Madrid having fallen to defeat at AC Milan today, could have a huge bearing on the table at both the very top and qualification spots.
For Liverpool, they continue to look the goods under Slot. They were solid defensively, with Ibrahima Konate in particular impressing, while Curtis Jones had yet another excellent outing in midfield. Mo Salah was well handled by Piero Hincapie but still did provide a pair of assists, while Cody Gakpo and Luis Diaz were strong in their work on attack. Slot appears to have plenty of options at present, with competition for places strong, and the Reds look a good chance of challenging for multiple trophies this season.
Leverkusen will be left wondering just how this game got away from them. They were deservedly equal at the break, giving as good as they received, and looking likely bursting forward in the wide areas through Jeremie Frimpong and Alex Grimaldo. Frimpong had a goal rightly disallowed late in the first half, while Victor Boniface was getting himself into advanced positions to ask questions of the defence. But the momentary lapse to let Diaz in for his first turned the tide, and other than Boniface missing a golden chance to pull it back to 2-1, they always looked a long shot to get back into the game. Caoimhin Kelleher made a trio of good saves late to deny Patrick Schick, Florian Wirtz and Robert Andrich, but by then the game was as good as lost, before Diaz grabbed his hat-trick deep into stoppage time.
A magnificent second half performance from Liverpool sees them romp home to a fourth straight Champions League win to start this season, and put themselves firmly in control of a path into the crucial top eight of this new format. For an hour, this was a gripping contest, with both teams looking to attack, and play the game at a high tempo. Despite it taking that long to break the deadlock, the game always had the look of one that would bring goals, and once the first one came, Leverkusen had no answer for a Liverpool team in the mood to score more. It was Luis Diaz who broke the deadlock courtesy of a fantastic Curtis Jones pass, and from that moment - with Leverkusen committed to chasing the game - Liverpool ran rampant on the counter. DIaz added two more alongside Cody Gakpo's goal, and the Reds continued their wonderful start under Arne Slot.
90+2'
DIAZ GRABS A HAT-TRICK! Liverpool break up another Leverkusen attack through Robertson's tackle, and then Liverpool are away on the break with Nunez driving forward from halfway. He had three options in support, but opted to shoot himself, only for Hincapie to block. The rebound went straight to Diaz though, who tucked home the finish to claim his third!
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L. Diaz
90+2'
+3
90'
CHANCE! Liverpool are still in the mood for scoring as they work forward, and Gravenberch gets himself well advanced to collect a pass from Salah inside the area. The ball for Robertson arriving in the area is a shade behind him though, and he's unable to steer it on target.