Liverpool produced a ruthless response to their recent struggles by storming to a 5 -1 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt in the Champions League, ending a miserable run of four consecutive defeats across all competitions. former Frankfurt striker Hugo Ekitike was at the heart of the turnaround, scoring the tone for a dominant display from Arne Slot’s side.
The night began poorly for the reigning Premier League Champions when Rasmus Kristensen fired Frankfurt ahead in the 26th minute, his powerful strike flashing past Giorgi Mamardashvili and in off the post. Liverpool, however, refused to fold. just nine minutes later, Andy Roberson launched a perfect long pass over the top for Ekitike, who raced clear from halfway before calmly slotting beneath goalkeeper Michael Zetterer. The French forward, who spent two seasons with Frankfurt, raised his hands in apology to the home supporters after finding the net.
That goal sparked Liverpool into life. Within the next ten minutes, captain Virgil Van Daijk and fellow center-back Ibrahima konatè both punished slack defending from set pieces to make it 3-1 before half-time. Van Dijk powered home a near-post header from Cody Gakpo’s corner before Konaté repeated the feat from Dominik Szoboslai’s delivery just before the interval.
Liverpool continued their relentless tempo after the break. Florian Wirtz, returning to his homeland, marked a standout performance by assisting Gokp’s neat side-foot finish in the 66th minute. Four minutes later, Wirtz again played provider as Szoboszlai drilled a fierce low strike from 25 yards into the bottom corner to complete the rout.
Substitute Mohamed Salah came close to adding a sixth late on,denied by a superb save from Zetterer, while Alexander Isak’s first-half groin injury was the only concern for manager Arne Slot. “It’s a difficult balance with players coming back from long layoffs,”Slot said post-match. “But the team reacted perfectly after falling behind. It was a win we really needed.”
Ekitike’s performance was symbolic of Liverpool’s newfound composure. “It felt special to score here,”he said “Frankfurt gave me a lot, so I had to show respect. But for Liverpool, it was important to win again and build confidence.”
Van Dijk, meanwhile, continued his remarkable record from corners- each of his five Champions League goals for Liverpool has been a header. Since joining the club in 2018, only Harry Kane has scored more headed goals for a single Premier League side.
The emphatic victory lifts Liverpool to 10th in the expanded 36-team Champions League table with six points after three matches. For Frankfurt, who have now conceded 23 goals in their last six matches, it was another sobering night.
Liverpool will hope this result marks a turning point ahead of Saturday’s Premier League clash with Brentford and a looming showdown with Real Madrid on November 4. For Arne Slot’s men, the massage was clear: crisis over- Liverpool are back.
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