Liverpool 4-0 Bayer Leverkusen: Match Report & Ratings | OneFootball

Written by Mark Strickland

Liverpool 4-0 Bayer Leverkusen

Liverpool ran riot with four second-half goals against the Bundesliga champions as The Kop reminded Xabi Alonso who’s boss.

Luis Diaz scored his first hat-trick for the club and Cody Gakpo added the other goal as Alonso’s return to Merseyside as a manager saw the Spaniard walk away with his tail between his legs somewhat.

The fireworks came after an uneventful first half before it became another remarkable European night under the lights at Anfield as The Reds kept up their perfect Champions League start.

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Arne Slot replaced Dominik Szoboszlai with Curtis Jones in the lineup but retained Kostas Tsimikas over Andy Robertson with Diaz down the middle in what was another strong Reds’ side.

Jones registered his second assist in successive games, playing through Diaz who dinked Lukas Hradecky to give Liverpool lift off. Composure personified.

The ball was in play for 64 seconds between the goals on Saturday. Two minutes and 17 seconds separated them this time as both Anfield and the players raised the temperature alike.

Mohamed Salah found Gakpo’s back-post run before the Dutchman cooly headed home. Initially disallowed, VAR overturned the on-field offside decision after a lengthy check.

The Egyptian King was the creator again, this time crossing to Diaz who controlled with his right foot before stabbing home from close range for his second of a memorable night.

Still not afraid to attack, Leverkusen came close when Caoimhin Kelleher denied Patrick Schick and Florian Wirtz – after Ibrahima Konate failed to clear – to preserve the shutout.

Late on, Darwin Nunez was greedy having done superbly well with the initial, but his blocked shot fell to Diaz who finished no-look into the unguarded corner.

Player Ratings

XI: Caoimhin Kelleher 8, Trent Alexander-Arnold 7, Ibrahima Konate 8, Virgil van Dijk 7, Kostas Tsimikas 8, Ryan Gravenberch 8, Alexis Mac Allister 7, Curtis Jones 8, Mohamed Salah 8, Luis Diaz 9, Cody Gakpo 8

Subs: Dominik Szboszlai 7, Andy Robertson 7, Conor Bradley 6, Darwin Nunez 7, Jarell Quansah 6