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Real Madrid become first away team to score five goals at Anfield in the Champions League
Defending Champions Real Madrid came from two goals down to deal a hammer blow on Liverpool’s already fragile season with a 5-2 mauling of the Reds at Anfield in the UEFA Champions League.
Karim Benzema finally opened his account in the UCL for this season and Vinicius scored a brace and assisted another goal as Real Madrid fought to overcome Liverpool’s good start that saw Darwin Nunez and Mohamed Salah give them an early two-goal lead.
The win leaves Liverpool with an almost insurmountable task ahead of the return leg at Real Madrid’s Bernabeu in two weeks.
How it happened
Liverpool had lost three of their last four meetings with Real Madrid, including two UEFA Champions League finals and had only revenge on their minds going into the round of 16 first leg tie at Anfield.
Their passion to finally get one over Real Madrid was easy to see right from the start, and they took the lead with only four minutes on the clock thanks to Darwin Nunez who scored with an acrobatic finish to give Thibaut Courtois in goal for Real Madrid no chance.
Courtois was blameless in the first goal, but he was fully complicit in the second as he gifted Mohamed Salah a chance to score with a poor touch in the six-yard box.
Salah pounced to put Liverpool 2-0 up, and in the process became Liverpool’s leading scorer in European competition, overtaking Steven Gerrard.
It looked like it would be smooth sailing from then non for Liverpool, and their revenge was finally within their grasp, but Vinicius Jr and Alisson Becker had other ideas.
Vinicius pulled a goal back for Real Madrid with a stunning effort after leaving his marker for dead and then equalised for Los Blancos with help from his countryman Alisson in goal for Liverpool.
Like his opposite number in the Real Madrid goal, Alisson was feeling particularly generous, perhaps paying homage to the month of love, and lovingly hit an errant pass against Viiniicius, who was completely unaware of the situation.
Alsson had to watch in horror as the ball looped over him into the goal to pull Real Madrid back on level terms going into the halftime break.
Liverpool had made a fast start in the first half, but in the second half, it was Real Madrid’s turn as they scored within three minutes of the restart.
Eder Militao somehow found himself unmarked in the box packed with Liverpool players during a set piece and headed home to give Real Madrid the lead for the first time in the match.
Real extended that lead on 67 minutes as Karim Benzema’s shot found a way past Alisson following a deflection off Joe Gomez.
Benzema then followed that up by scoring a goal that was all his as he expertly rounded Alisson following a rapid counterattack to make it 5-2 on the night for Real Madrid.
Liverpool with a leg and a half out of the Champions League
The result means that Liverpool are essentially out of the Champions League as they will require a modern-day miracle to overturn the deficit away from home.
They head to the Bernabeu in two weeks to play what might end up being an inconsequential fixture as they have little hope of overturning the scoreline after the awful defensive showing at Anfield.
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