LIVERPOOL, England — Liverpool maintained their perfect start to the UEFA Champions League with a 2-0 win against Real Madrid on Wednesday that leaves the reigning European champions in danger of missing out qualification for the knockout stages.
Second-half goals from Alexis Mac Allister and Cody Gakpo at Anfield sealed Liverpool’s fifth successive Champions League victory and moved Arne Slot’s team two points clear at the top of the table. It was the Reds’ first win against Los Blancos in the Champions League since March 3, 2009, ending an eight-game winless streak against the Spanish capital club (a span that included seven losses).
But Real, who won the Champions League for a record 15th time against Borussia Dortmund at Wembley last season, have now lost three of five games so far and sit in 24th position — the final qualification spot for February’s playoff stage.
Kylian Mbappé had the chance to equalise for Madrid when he had a penalty saved by Liverpool keeper Caoimhín Kelleher while the scoreline was 1-0 to the home side. The penalty drama also affected Liverpool, with Mohamed Salah sending his spot kick wide on 70 minutes.
Real now face a tough trip to UEFA Europa League champions Atalanta on Matchday 6 next month as they attempt to kick-start their hopes of qualifying for the next stage of the competition. — Mark Ogden
Mbappé and Salah both miss; Mbappé’s is costly
Nobody will have been more pleased to see Salah skew his second-half penalty wide at Anfield than Mbappé, having seen his own spot kick saved nine minutes earlier. Salah’s miss took at least some of the spotlight off Mbappé after a truly disastrous evening for the Madrid forward.
This was the France international’s biggest opportunity yet to impress in a Madrid shirt, after a shaky start to life at the Bernabeú. Instead, it was his season so far in microcosm. In 90 minutes, Mbappé had only two shots, one on target, and that was the penalty. He attempted just 22 passes — only Ferland Mendy had fewer — completing 16.
Scoring the penalty could have changed his night, and would have had Madrid right back in the game at 1-1. Instead, Mbappé fluffed his lines. His performance will be scrutinised in the Madrid media on Thursday, and the fans’ patience won’t last forever.
Salah’s miss was less costly — even if it was a worse effort — and might be forgotten soon enough given Liverpool’s win. But it wasn’t what he needed, either, in the week he admitted he’s “more out than in” at Anfield, having not received a new contract offer.
Salah is a Liverpool legend, though, and his team is flying domestically and in Europe. Mbappé is just starting out at Madrid, and with three defeats out of five, their Champions League campaign is already spiraling out of control. — Alex Kirkland
Kelleher lives up to Klopp-given nickname
If Kelleher’s Liverpool career to date could be summed up by a single moment, then his superb penalty save to deny Mbappé might be it.
A bystander for much of the evening against Madrid, the man Jürgen Klopp once dubbed the “best No. 2 in the world” lived up to his title once again, becoming the first goalkeeper to deny the Frenchman from the spot in the Champions League and laying the foundations for Liverpool to secure a famous win against their European nemesis.
In truth, Kelleher can no longer be dubbed a “No. 2.” He has featured more for Liverpool than Alisson Becker in 2024, owing to the Brazilian’s ongoing struggles with a hamstring problem.
Once again on Wednesday night, he didn’t let Slot’s side down, making a handful of late saves to preserve the hosts’ clean sheet. While the impending arrival of Giorgi Mamardashvili from Valencia surely means Kelleher’s long-term future lies away from Anfield, his enduring brilliance in Alisson’s absence means that if, or when, he departs he will do so as a cult hero. — Beth Lindop
Bradley gives Alexander-Arnold a look into the future
Trent Alexander-Arnold might have had an uncomfortable glimpse into the future while sitting on the Liverpool substitutes’ bench as his teammates defeated Real Madrid.
On the one hand, the Liverpool full-back will have seen Conor Bradley produce a stunning performance at right-back and show that he is more than capable of keeping Alexander-Arnold out of the team now that he is fully fit. And with endless speculation linking Alexander-Arnold with a free agent move to Real next summer if he fails to sign a new deal at Anfield, the 26-year-old might just have learned that the La Liga giants are a team in decline only six months after winning the Champions League and that a move to the Santiago Bernabeú might not be the dream it once seemed.
But this night was really all about Bradley, the impressive 21-year-old who was outstanding against Real.
The Northern Ireland international set the tone with a crunching tackle on Mbappé in the first half that brought a huge cheer from The Kop. Bradley went on to produce a rock-solid performance at full-back, as well as offering a threat going forward.
Bradley was denied a goal only when Thibaut Courtois produced a world-class save to keep out his second-half header from close range.
If Liverpool are worried about losing Alexander-Arnold, they really shouldn’t be. — Ogden
Bellingham feels Anfield’s wrath
Jude Bellingham delivered an outspoken news conference ahead of this game when he spoke of being singled out as a “scapegoat” after England’s failure to win Euro 2024. He also dismissed speculation that he almost joined Liverpool before signing with Real Madrid in 2023 because Real were on a “different level.”
Bellingham’s comments about Liverpool led to him being booed by the Anfield crowd whenever he touched the ball. It seemed to have an impact on his performance because the 21-year-old was poor against Slot’s side.
Liverpool midfielders Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch dominated Bellingham, both in physical challenges and with the ball, and he spent the majority of the game struggling to make an impact.
In Bellingham’s defence, he was playing in a deeper role than he typically enjoys. Carlo Ancelotti deployed him on the left of midfield behind a front three of Mbappé, Brahim Díaz and Arda Güler.
Just as with England at Euro 2024, though, when the game passes Bellingham by, he offers little and his frustration becomes evident. This game was another example, and it couldn’t have been more badly timed considering Bellingham had complained about his treatment after the Euros.
When a player talks about being misjudged or harshly treated, the best way to prove a point is usually by doing it on the pitch. At Anfield, he ended up being outshone by two of the players Liverpool recruited after pulling out of the race to sign him 18 months ago. — Ogden
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