Well, when I said that an early goal would do our confidence a world of good, who knew that I was talking about Milan? The San Siro on a European night is a spectacle to behold, and Tuesday evening was no exception. Despite the home side’s disappointing start to the Serie A campaign, a packed San Siro welcomed Liverpool with a cacophony of noise, accompanied by an impressive tifo displaying a single word: ‘Fearless.’ These elements, combined with the players’ entrance to the pitch and the subsequent presentation of the Champions League Anthem, served as a reminder that we are back where we belong: under the brightest lights in the most prestigious club football competition in the world. After the disappointment that was Saturday, this fixture represented a potential crossroads in the early stages of the campaign as a whole. With the introduction of the new UCL format—and with no one exceedingly confident of the points tally necessary to secure one of the top-eight spots—getting off to a positive start was vital.
Birthday boy Arne Slot made several changes to the starting XI from the weekend, with Andy Robertson making way for Kostas Tsimikas at left-back, and Cody Gakpo replacing Luis Diaz on the left wing. An AC Milan side consisting largely of Chelsea rejects, with Emerson Royal on the bench, only helped to grow my confidence prior to kick-off; however, this confidence proved to be short-lived. A simple outlet from Maignan into the midfield in the opening exchanges saw both Virgil and Kostas caught woefully out of position, and Christian Pulisic found himself in an ocean of space on the right wing. The American sprinted nearly 40 yards with the ball at his foot before rifling a powerful right-footed effort beyond the glove of Alisson and into the side netting of the far post—and before you knew it, in classic Liverpool fashion, we found ourselves a goal behind before getting started.
The response that followed was a 46-minute onslaught that I believe was far and away the best half we have played this season. An avalanche of chances began falling to the visitors, as the press that had appeared so lackluster at the weekend seemed to return in the blink of an eye. The Liverpool midfield firmly grasped control of the game through the relentless running of Dominik Szoboszlai, the composure and spatial awareness of Alexis Mac Allister, and the silky elegance of Ruud Gullit, I mean Ryan Gravenberch. This control allowed Cody Gakpo and Mohamed Salah the freedom of the San Siro to roam the wings, with the constant (and perhaps a touch fatigued) threat of Diogo Jota through the center. The pressure continued to build as Mohamed Salah struck the underside of the crossbar, and following an (absolutely insane) challenge on Cody Gakpo just outside of the penalty area (that for some reason was vehemently protested by offender Calabria), the Reds found themselves level through Big Ibou’s levitation act on the ensuing free kick. The pressure ramped up even further following the goal, with Mo again striking the underside of the bar, and Jota electing to ignore a furious Gakpo while firing a left-footed effort wide from 6 yards. Four minutes from the halftime whistle, Liverpool deservedly took the lead through skipper Virgil Van Dijk on a corner, with Milan making the curious decision to completely ignore the largest man on the pitch inside the 6-yard box. Milan will have been relieved to go into the half at 2-1 down, as it could have (and should have) been 3 or 4.
The second half started as the first had ended, with constant Liverpool pressure. Milan was being effectively played off their own patch; however, with the scoreline at 2-1, the Rossoneri reluctantly remained in the game. Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan was (finally—and I really mean finally) forced off the pitch through injury following yet another save on Diogo Jota, as wave after wave of Liverpool attack continued. Dominik Szoboszlai effectively put the game to bed in the 67th minute after getting a solid shin/knee (totally meant it) on the end of a Gakpo cross following a brilliant run from the Dutchman to create the opportunity. At 3-1 up, with Milan offering zero attacking threat, Arne Slot decided that it was time to have some fun. Darwin came on for a late cameo of chaos and wild overhead kick attempts, while newcomer Federico Chiesa was brought on in the waning minutes for his Liverpool debut. Endo also saw about 90 seconds of action, as Chelsea failure Tammy Abraham (bizarrely) attempted to pick a fight with the smallest man on the pitch—good on ya, Tammy; very brave—rounding out a terrifically satisfying and cathartic performance for Arne Slot’s resilient Reds in the opening fixture of the Champions League.
The Redmen return to Anfield on Saturday for a 3 PM kickoff against Bournemouth. The Cherries suffered defeat their last time out in the league at the hands of ringmaster Todd Boehly’s Chelsea, despite enjoying a strong start to the campaign. The Reds will look to continue the exorcism of last weekend’s demons on Merseyside and may be doing so with some changes to the starting XI. With the fixtures now coming thick and fast, I would not be surprised to see Darwin introduced for a weary-looking Jota. The decision of who will start on the left wing will be interesting as well, with Cody Gakpo in fine form and Luis Diaz rested for a majority of the match on Tuesday evening. For the sake of simplicity, if the form that we displayed on Tuesday night remains, we will be just fine.
Prediction: 2-0 Liverpool
First Goal Scorer: Darwin Nunez
Any Time Goal Scorer: Cody Gakpo
RIP Philip Dooley, YNWA
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