Liverpool secured their place in the last 16 of the Champions League with a 2-1 victory over 10-man Lille.
Mohamed Salah opened the scoring in the first half for the Reds before the French side went down to 10 men after the break after Aissa Mandi was shown a second yellow card.
Lille surprisingly drew level shortly afterwards through Jonathan David’s equaliser but substitue Harvey Elliott’s deflected strike ensured Liverpool maintained their perfect record and sealed top spot in the Champions league standings.
Arne Slot’s men now can’t be caught at the top of the table, meaning they will qualify automatically for the last 16 and avoid a two-legged knockout round tie.
Liverpool vs Lille
Liverpool went ahead after half an hour played after a searching ball by Curtis Jones behind the Lille defence was placed perfectly into Salah’s path, with the Egyptian doing what he does best and sweeping home the finish.
MO SALAH DOING MO SALAH THINGS! 🇪🇬👑#UCLonPrime pic.twitter.com/8sOvMd1OjW
— Amazon Prime Video Sport (@primevideosport) January 21, 2025
In a half of few chances, Salah could well of had his second in similar style before the break but this time his effort landed the other side of the post.
Lille’s task became even harder just before the hour mark when Aissa Mandi was shown a second yellow card in what appeared to hand the impetus for Liverpool to take control.
But moments later, the French supporters in the away end were celebrating as Gabriel Gudmundsson pulled the ball back in the box and Jonathan David reacted first to draw his side level.
😱 LILLE HAVE EQUALISED AT ANFIELD 😱
Moments after going down to 🔟 men, Jonathan David stuns the home crowd!#UCLonPrime pic.twitter.com/gEBVgwkmOx
— Amazon Prime Video Sport (@primevideosport) January 21, 2025
But their joy was short-lived as a corner came out as far as Elliott, who accepted shouts from the crowd to shoot and his effort deflected in.
Liverpool regain the lead thanks to a huge slice of luck!
Harvey Elliott’s strike goes in via a wicked deflection! 🔴#UCLonPrime pic.twitter.com/H8dE5wVzef
— Amazon Prime Video Sport (@primevideosport) January 21, 2025
Darwin Nunez thought he had scored his third stoppage-time goal in the space of a few days by tapping in from close range after Federico Chiesa’s effort was saved but the Uruguayan was well offside.
