September 18, (THEWILL) — Liverpool’s knack of producing late winners continued at Anfield as Virgil van Dijk’s stoppage-time header delivered a thrilling victory over Atlético Madrid in their UEFA Champions League opener. The Dutch defender rose to meet Dominik Szoboszlai’s corner kick, completing a dramatic turnaround after the visitors had fought back from two goals down to level the match.
Mohamed Salah orchestrated Liverpool’s blistering start, with the Egyptian forward involved in both goals that put the Reds 2-0 ahead within six minutes. His deflected free-kick wrong-footed Jan Oblak before the forward added a second through excellent combination play with Ryan Gravenberch, bulldozing past multiple Atlético defenders to finish clinically.
Arne Slot handed Alexander Isak his Liverpool debut, with the Swedish striker growing into the contest alongside fellow summer signing, Florian Wirtz. The record signing fired two attempts at Oblak’s goal during an impressive first-half performance that justified his inclusion in the starting XI.
Marcos Llorente proved the thorn in Liverpool’s side, scoring twice to bring Atlético level after their nightmare start. The versatile player netted just before half-time following Antoine Griezmann’s involvement in the build-up, then struck an excellent long-range effort with 10 minutes remaining to repeat his famous Anfield heroics from March 2020.
Diego Simeone’s side nearly snatched a point in the dying moments when Llorente turned provider for substitute Alexander Sørloth, but the Norwegian’s header proved comfortable for Alisson. The result maintains Liverpool’s perfect start in Europe while demonstrating their continued pedigree under Slot.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
