Galatasaray 1-0 Liverpool: Arne Slott’s side suffered a second defeat in Istanbul this season and need to bounce back if they are to reach the Champions League quarter-finals.
Liverpool were stunned again by Galatasaray (Image: Ahmad Mora/Getty Images)
Liverpool lost 1-0 to Galatasaray in the first leg of the round of 16 and will need to come back from the dead to reach the Champions League quarter-finals. This time, Mario Lemina’s early goal separated the teams, and Arne Slott’s side lost by the same scoreline as in the league match against Istanbul.
The game got off to a lightning start, with 10 shots on goal in the first 25 minutes. Lemina exploited Liverpool’s Achilles heel, scoring from set-pieces, only one of which found the back of the net.
Hugo Ekitike missed a big chance to equalize for the Reds in the second half, but he wasn’t the only one shaking the lines. Liverpool were looking to equalize and looked set to score an equaliser, with Ibrahima Konate helping to push the ball home, but VAR intervened and the goal was controversial.
Galatasaray will be favored heading into next Wednesday’s second leg at Anfield. Liverpool supporters would do well to create a similar raucous atmosphere as here.
Here are five stories from Rams Park.
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1. Lemina takes advantage of a familiar Liverpool mistake
Just minutes after almost giving Liverpool a goal, Lemina put Galatasaray ahead and the commotion grew even louder. The hosts were on the back foot for the first six minutes, but won their first attack with a corner kick.
Poor defending allowed Viktor Osimhen to head the ball back into the goal, and Lemina put her body on the line to beat Giorgi Mamadashvili. The former Southampton star has gone from almost nothing to something of a hero, but it’s been a long road.
As of December 30, no team in Europe’s top five leagues has conceded more set-piece goals than Liverpool, who conceded 12 goals. The Reds parted ways with their set-piece coach in January and while Liverpool have improved since then, it’s clear Slott’s side can still exploit from dead-ball situations.
Who will advance to the quarter-finals, Galatasaray or Liverpool? Let us know your prediction in the comments section.
Mario Lemina scores the opening goal from a corner kick (Image: YASIN AKGUL/AFP via Getty Images)
2. Useless Wirtz
For Florian Wirtz, it was a return to the starting lineup. The German player was injured last month and missed three games.
Wirtz returned as a second-half substitute against Wolves on Friday and helped Liverpool reach the FA Cup quarter-finals. Slott wasted no time getting the playmaker up to speed here, drafting him into the Reds’ lineup in the absence of Kodi Gakpo.
However, Wirtz was unable to repay his manager’s faith, missing two big chances in a chaotic opening 45 minutes. The £115m man and his teammates followed at the break.
Florian Wirtz messed up his lines twice (Image: Ahmad Mora/Getty Images)
3. Yilmaz terrorizes the Reds again
The situation remained largely unchanged in the second half, with the game remaining open and both teams creating chances. One man who benefited from the intense competition in transition was Baris Alper Yilmaz, who troubled Liverpool in September when the teams met at league stage.
Slott admitted in Monday’s pregame press conference that Yilmaz was “too quick” for the defense in the last game. The Hungarians, who used Milos Kerkez at left-back instead of Andy Robertson, had some great moments against Yilmaz in the first half.
Kerkes quickly went on the record and was not the last Liverpool player to be shown a yellow card for a foul on the winger. Van Dijk also picked up the booking when Yilmaz threatened to race away from the Reds captain just before time expired.
Baris Alper Yilmaz turns two Liverpool players into cards (Image: Liverpool FC/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
4. Salah becomes obsessed as his records grow
After an hour, I had seen enough slots. Kerkes was sent off in place of Robertson, and Jeremy Frimpong was replaced by Mo Salah, who endured an equally tough night in attack.
By starting this game, Salah takes Liverpool’s record for Champions League appearances to 18, surpassing Jamie Carragher. But the Egyptian was aiming for another milestone: becoming the first African player to score 50 goals in the competition.
Salah had scored in Liverpool’s last two games but looked lacking in confidence in Istanbul and it was no surprise that he came off as a substitute. Will he be able to have a big say in the second leg?
Mo Salah was largely anonymous (Image: Abdulhamid Hosbas/Anadolu via Getty Images)
5. VAR rules out Liverpool’s equalizer
Shortly after Ekitike wasted a one-on-one with Galatasaray goalkeeper Uglukan Çakir, Liverpool finally got the ball in the back of the net. It came from his own corner and Konate appeared to have put the finishing touches on it.
However, it was unclear whether the goal was actually awarded on the field. Referee Jesus Gil Manzano indicated he would wait for VAR’s assessment, and a forensic examination ruled that Konate had handled the ball and Liverpool’s equalizer was ruled out.
The Reds equalized in the closing stages, but Galatasaray held on. The Turkish champions will now head to Anfield without the support of away supporters as they aim to reach the last eight.
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