Liverpool Achieves Confident Start in Champions League by Securing Second Victory Against Italian Team
Liverpool is navigatin’ what folks reckon to be one of the beefiest fixture lists in the new-fangled Champions League with stunning finesse.
They’ve dismissed not one but two Italian clubs with admirable ease, first handing AC Milan a 3-1 defeat at San Siro, then neatly notching a 2-0 victory over the lesser-known Bologna on Wednesday.
Next up, Liverpool will face two German teams, including Bayer Leverkusen led by former Anfield icon Xabi Alonso; shortly after, two Spanish sides await, including an encounter with reigning champs Real Madrid.
These upcoming home fixtures in November will reveal to Liverpool’s fresh face of a coach, Arne Slot, how Anfield thunders alive with anticipation on European nights, following a serene home debut in the Champions League.
The Egyptian wonder, Mohamed Salah, with a flick of his trusty left boot, crafted an 11th-minute goal for Alexis Mac Allister before curling in a breathtaking rise of a shot come the 75th minute.
Salah etched his name in club history, scoring in a fifth consecutive home match within the realms of the European Cup or Champions League, under the watchful gaze of scoring legends Ian Rush and Kenny Dalglish.
As for Bologna, treading into top-tier European competition nearly six decades later, they still seek their first goal, though they’re certainly not slacking in effort.
Their resolve saw them twice rattle the frame of Liverpool’s goal, forcing Alisson Becker into a crucial acrobatic save during a spirited push around the 30-minute mark. Their last outing against Shakhtar Donetsk saw them squander 17 goal attempts in a dreary goalless draw. They amped up 12 more shots in their clash with Liverpool.
“Overall, it was a good result, yet I’d save the word ‘ecstatic’ for another day,” mused Slot.
Bologna returns to English soil in three weeks to square off against Aston Villa, the side that edged Bayern Munich 1-0 on Wednesday.
Liverpool’s players seemed like they queued up to plant the ball in the net from the start, as Salah toyed with Bologna’s left flank defense.
From his delicate cross, Mac Allister tapped in a straightforward half-volley a couple of yards from the goal line. Luis Díaz loitered next to Mac Allister unbothered, had the need arisen.
The stark disparity in experience and resources was glaring between the clubs; a chasm of over $600 million in revenue loomed last year. The Premier League’s modern chasm over Serie A was underscored with Liverpool’s 2023 financials boasting about $200 million more in revenue than that of Milan and Bologna combined.
Liverpool fielded a lineup brimming with familiar faces — seven of the starters, including the entire defense, were veterans from the 2022 Champions League final against Real Madrid. In comparison, Bologna’s skipper Remo Freuler’s claim to fame was appearing for Atalanta in a 2020 quarterfinal.
And yet, Liverpool let their guard down somewhat in their pursuit of a second goal, allowing Bologna a five-minute dominance. Bologna’s Swiss winger Dan Ndoye clattered the ball off both the crossbar and a post, while Alisson stretched every sinew to thwart Kacper Urbański’s effort after Ndoye outfoxed Trent Alexander-Arnold.
Liverpool journeys to Leipzig on October 23, marching forward into one of the 36-team tournament’s meanest schedules, locking horns exclusively with squads hailing from the prestigious big-5 leagues over the initial seven rounds.
A trio of successive victories, tallying nine points, likely secures Liverpool a berth in the knockout stage. The crème de la crème eight sides glide straight into the round of 16 in March.
Edited by: Ali Musa
alimusa@axadletimes.com
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