By Olukayode Olumuyiwa.
Liverpool secured a vital 1-0 victory over Inter Milan in the UEFA Champions League (UCL) league phase on Tuesday, with Dominik Szoboszlai netting an 88th-minute penalty to earn the win. This victory represents just Liverpool’s second win in their last seven matches (D2, L3).
Pre-Match Context and First Half Action
Liverpool travelled to Italy without forward Mohamed Salah, who was left out of the squad following his post-match comments after Saturday’s 3-3 draw against Leeds United. Salah had claimed he had been thrown “under the bus” by the club and manager Arne Slot.
Despite the outside noise, Liverpool made an encouraging start. Curtis Jones forced a save from goalkeeper Yann Sommer in the opening 20 minutes. Ibrahima Konaté briefly thought he had opened the scoring when he headed the ball home just past the half-hour mark, but the defender’s second goal of the league phase was disallowed after Hugo Ekitike was penalized for a handball following a lengthy VAR review of a knockdown from Virgil van Dijk. Inter grew into the half and Lautaro Martínez’s powerful header tested Alisson’s quick reactions.
Second Half and Late Drama
Chances dried up after the interval as both attacks struggled against two stubborn backlines. The lack of goalmouth action prompted Hugo Ekitike to take a comfortable aim from distance at the experienced Sommer.
The first real chance of the second period arrived in the 80th minute when Conor Bradley found rare space in the Inter box but could only fire straight at Sommer at the near post.
Just as the game looked destined to finish goalless, Liverpool were presented with the chance to snatch all three points. A controversial penalty was awarded after Alessandro Bastoni was penalized for a slight shirt tug on Florian Wirtz. Szoboszlai stepped up to assume responsibility, convincingly thumping the penalty out of Sommer’s reach, sealing the 1-0 win.
League Implications
The win moves “The Reds” up to eighth spot in the UCL league phase. They are now level on points with fifth-placed Inter, who have now suffered back-to-back defeats in the UCL.
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