If Arne Slot had hoped that Liverpool’s previous meeting with Galatasaray in this season’s Champions League would steady the nerves ahead of the Reds’ return trip to the Rams Park stadium in Istanbul, then he was to be sorely mistaken. Liverpool’s abject performance was even worse than their defeat in the corresponding fixture last September, with lessons unlearned and fans bewildered as to how far the standards have fallen from last season’s title-winning campaign.
In what was Slot’s 100th game in charge of Liverpool, he saw his team initially press and harry from the opening kick off, forcing Galatasaray’s defence into making errors that should have been capatalised on, in particular when sloppy play between Mario Lemina and goalkeeper Uğurcan Çakır presented Florian Wirtz a golden opportunity to score only for the German to skew his shot horribly wide.
Liverpool’s early profligacy would soon come back to haunt them, with old set-piece failings continuing to cost them. Gabriel Sara’s seventh-minute corner would easily be headed towards goal by the poorly marked Victor Osimhen, with Lemina on hand to nod the ball past Giorgi Mamardashvili at close range. Conceding early in such a hostile atmosphere was the worst possible start for Liverpool, and the sloppiness of Liverpool’s defending and play in general would only continue. Osimhen missed a golden opportunity to make it two-nil when his header went past the far post after being left unmarked by both Ibrahima Konate and Virgil Van Dijk. Wirtz then missed another gilt-edged opportunity to equalise for Liverpool, with his weak shot easily parried by Çakır before more defensive sleepiness from Liverpool – again poor marking allowing Davinson Sanchez to have a free header that was excellently saved by the sprawling Mamardashvili.
The second half would go much the same way as the first, with Slot’s halftime team talk failing to have any effect on his players. Konate’s nightmare evening would continue as his badly judged backpass would lead to Osimhen making it two-nil for Galatasaray, only for VAR to generously rule that Baris Yilmaz had been offside in the buildup. Osimhen would prove to be a thorn in Konate’s side all evening, and few Liverpool fans would be upset if he were to depart this summer in what has been an error-strewn season for the French centre back.
Liverpool’s forwards toiled throughout the game but were gifted a chance to equalise when Yilmaz’s errant pass was pounced upon by Hugo Ekitike, but as the striker bore through on goal, his chipped effort was superbly saved by Çakır. Liverpool then thought they had equalised from a corner, as the ball had been bundled into the net, only for VAR to intervene, stating that the ball had struck Konate’s arm in the buildup, despite valid claims of a foul on Van Dijk amidst the goalmouth melee.
Despite Slot’s protestations about the disallowed goal and the referee’s performance in general, he had no complaints about the result. His team laboured throughout the game and were fortunate to escape with only one goal deficit. Liverpool will fancy their chances going through in the return leg at what will be a nervy Anfield, but qualification to the quarter finals cannot be taken for granted, as fans will be wondering which Liverpool team will turn up in what has been such a Jekyll and Hyde of a season. In what was a landmark fixture for Liverpool’s Dutch manager, his team’s lethargic display ensured it was not a game he would look back on fondly.
