Van Dijk scores late winner in 5-goal thriller against Atletico

Photo: Stephen Gormley (Red Eye Photo Agency)

Atletico fought back from two nil down to level the tie but Liverpool seized the victory with a late stoppage-time winner from Dutch defender Virgil Van Dijk

Atletico almost snatched a surprising point after Marcos Llorente scored a double during a dominant Liverpool display. It wasn’t the first time the Spanish player had scored a brace against the English club. He did so back in 2020 to knock the then holders Liverpool out after scoring twice in extra time at Anfield in their Champions League Round of 16 match. He marked that impressive performance at the iconic stadium by naming his dog Anfield!

Five years on, Liverpool got off to a flyer in this, their first Champions League match of the season. Mo Salah was looking sharp on the right side of the pitch attacking the Anfield Road end and won a free kick after just three minutes of the start of the match. He took it himself and fired a shot into the bottom corner of the net after it took a significant deflection off Robertson, who was eventually credited with the goal . 1-0 to Liverpool after just 4 minutes.

Two minutes later it was 2-0. Egypt’s Salah kept three men off his back and lashed the ball in to put the home side into a commanding lead. Liverpool did not let up and for the first 35 minutes of the match they kept Atletico Madrid pinned back into their own half. It looked like the contest was over when the referee awarded Liverpool a penalty for handball. However VAR over-turned the decision to keep the match at 2-0.

In stoppage time at the end of the first half Marcos Llorente stunned both sets of supporters with a goal for Atletico. The goal seemed to come out of nowhere and completely against the run of play. That goal totally changed the state of play as both teams came out in the second half, with the away side looking more confident and a sense of anxiety creeping in over the home side.

Salah should have restored the two-goal cushion in the 65th minute when a blisteringly fast counter attack ended with Salah hitting the post with just the keeper to beat. Liverpool were left to rue that missed opportunity when Llorente got his and Atletico’s second in the 81st minute with a great volley from the edge of the box which was deflected into the net.

However Liverpool didn’t freeze and they battled until the final whistle to restore their lead. A late corner in the 92nd minute was swung in and Liverpool captain Van Dyke headed the ball low and hard to make it 3-2 on the night. The roof nearly came off the stadium with the ensuing celebrations.

A great game and a great atmosphere to get the European season off to a great start for Liverpool with 3 points on the board against a quality side.