Liverpool clashed heads with Real Madrid at the Estadio Alfredo Di Stefano earlier tonight as they looked to grind out a result on the road. The Reds made a poor start to the game and conceded the opening goal in the 27th minute when Vinicius Junior found the back of the net after a well-timed run in behind the Liverpool backline. Marco Asensio pounced on a poor header by Trent Alexander-Arnold and showed great touch to double Madrid’s lead from point-blank range. Los Blancos went into the half-time interval 2-0 up on the scoreline.
The Merseyside outfit got a goal back in the 51st minute when Mohamed Salah scored from close range. However, Vinicius Junior netted another goal with a clever finish in the 65th minute to put daylight between the two sides. The match ended with Jurgen Klopp’s men suffering a disappointing 3-1 loss at the Spanish capital which leaves them with a mountain to climb in the second leg of the UEFA Champions League quarterfinal tie.
Let’s take a look at how each Liverpool player performed during the match against Los Blancos.
GK: Alisson Becker – 5/10
The Brazilian keeper couldn’t do much about either of Madrid’s first two goals. However, he should have saved Vinicius Junior’s goal in the second half.
RB: Trent Alexander-Arnold – 4/10
The English right-back failed to deal with the pace of Vinicius Junior and gifted the home side their second goal with a school-boy error at the back. However, he did well to recover and made a great last-ditch tackle to save his team from conceding another breakaway goal.
CB: Ozan Kabak – 7/10
The Turkish centre-back got caught out by Vinicius’ run in the lead-up to the opener. Otherwise, he didn’t put a foot wrong in the game and did well to neutralize the threat of Karim Benzema.
CB: Nathaniel Phillips – 7/10
Phillips was strong in the air but his lack of mobility was exploited by the Madrid attackers. He still put in a solid defensive display despite conceding three goals tonight.
LB: Andrew Robertson – 6/10
The Scottish full-back was full of energy and running down the left flank. He did his defensive duties well but his final delivery often let him down.
CM: Naby Keita – 7/10
Keita showed a few flashes of brilliance with his driving runs from midfield. However, defensively he didn’t do much work and got replaced in the first half.
CM: Fabinho – 5/10
The Brazilian midfield ace struggled to win the ball back and often got outrun by the opposition at the centre of the park. A rare poor display from him.
CM: Georginio Wijnaldum – 5/10
The Dutch midfielder slowed the tempo of Liverpool’s build-up play far too often and was too cautious with his passing. Defensively, he didn’t offer any protection for his teammates at the back.
RW: Mohamed Salah – 7/10
The Egyptian winger struggled to get into the game but kept his calm to find the back of the net in the second half. His goal tonight would give Liverpool a glimmer of hope in the second leg.
ST: Diogo Jota – 6/10
The Portuguese striker tried his best to create chances for others around him but was responsible for squandering two good chances to score with his head. There was no goal for him tonight.
LW: Sadio Mane – 4/10
The Senegalese winger didn’t get any calls from the referee in what turned out to be a rough outing for him. He looked like a player out of form and was guilty of throwing away possession far too often.
Substitutes:
CM: Thiago Alcantara – 5/10
He got some control back in midfield but was quite wasteful in the final third.
ST: Roberto Firmino – 6/10
The Brazilian forward struggled to get into the flow of the game.
CAM: Xherdan Shaqiri – 6/10
He offered very little after coming off the bench.
