Arne Slot’s Liverpool look on course to challenge on multiple fronts for the entire season after continuing their impressive consistency by thumping Bundesliga giants Bayer Leverkusen 4-0 in the Champions League
Liverpool continued their scintillating recent form by thumping Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen 4-0 at Anfield in the Champions League on Tuesday night – making it 11 wins from their last 12 matches.
The Reds were rampant against Xabi Alonso’s side as Luis Diaz scored a second half hat-trick, with Cody Gakpo on target again to maintain his goalscoring run.
Arne Slot’s team look on course to challenge on multiple fronts for the entire season after showing impressive consistency and next welcome Aston Villa to Anfield on Saturday. After another enjoyable evening for Liverpool, Mirror Football has taken a look at the biggest headlines coming out of the club.
Van Dijk compares Diaz to iconic Reds forward
Luis Diaz was the hero against Leverkusen this week as he inspired Liverpool to a thumping win over a team that went unbeaten in the Bundesliga last season – scoring a hat-trick to take his goal tally to nine goals in all competitions.
Diaz is becoming more and more influential for the Reds – having scored 13 times last season – and club captain Virgil van Dijk believes he is resembling another key forward that excelled for the club in Sadio Mane.
Mane was a cult figure at Anfield as he inspired the club to the title and Champions League, netting 120 goals along the way, and Van Dijk said there were similarities to the Senegalese star.
“Yeah, I think we’ve seen that over the last couple of years with Sadio playing as a No 9 and drifting in different positions, so I think the players can do damage everywhere.
“Obviously for him, I’m very pleased for him to get this first Champions League hat-trick of his career. I think he’s an amazing player, like the rest of the guys.”
Nunez displays his selfless side
It hasn’t been the easiest of seasons for Darwin Nunez – the £85m Uruguayan forward – so it’s to his credit he put the team ahead of himself individually in the win over Leverkusen.
The 25-year-old, who only has two goals in all competitions, came on for the last ten minutes against the German outfit and had to watch on as Diaz and Gakpo both grabbed the goals – with Mohamed Salah also playing a crucial role.
But Nunez earned credit from fans after celebrating Diaz’s treble on social media after the game, reposting a tweet from Liverpool official account hailing the Colombian star and using a fire emoji.
Nunez has struggled to get in the team this season, starting three times and coming off the bench on four occasions in the Premier League – but Slot insisted there was nothing to worry about for the striker.
“I just said something about Darwin Nunez,” he said. “In the Premier League and the Champions League, you have to play so many games at the highest level and it’s not always possible for every player to play every game, especially in certain positions.”
Alonso makes feelings clear on Liverpool
Xabi Alonso will be remembered as a hero for Liverpool fans after winning four trophies with the Reds – including that iconic 2005 Champions League final.
And it’s clear the Bayer Leverkusen boss is still incredibly fond of the club after touching the famous “This is Anfield” sign not once, but twice as he made his way down the tunnel before the game and ahead of the second half.
The Spaniard is one of the most highly-rated coaches in Europe after his incredible title win with Leverkusen and while his side were well beaten at Liverpool, his classy gesture will have gone down well among the Reds faithful.
When asked before the game how he felt about returning to Anfield – 25 years after leaving the club for Real Madrid in 2009 – he said: “We will see, I will tell you after the game how I feel. There will be a moment for everything, but the main thing is not me. It’s the players, how we deal with the emotions you have in this stadium.”
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