Genk 1-4 Liverpool
While Mohamed Salah made his return from an ankle injury, it was Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain who starred for Liverpool as they grab their second win in Group E of the Champions League.
After a recent draw against Manchester United that put a slight dent to their flawless Premier League record, the Jurgen Klopp-mentored squad shrugged that off by simply outclassing Genk.
English forward Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who was sidelined for the most part due to a knee injury last season, wasted no time making his presence felt when he scored an early one in the game’s first two minutes. He added one more at the second half to complete the brace.
Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah added one each in the match’s last 20 minutes, while Genk’s Stephen Odey provided one for their team in order to avoid further embarrassment.
Genk’s Champions League 2019 odds of making it to the next round look bleak as they’ve already suffered two losses in the group stage.
Genk are placed fourth at the table with one point, while Napoli, Liverpool, and Red Bull have seven, six, and three respectively.
Today, SBOBET is here to help you re-live some of the Champions League 2019 highlights in this fixture.
Highlights of the game
The Belgium champions have been looking for some home comfort coming into this game, and they hope that their recent draw against Serie A’s Napoli can somehow provide them confidence against the Premier League powerhouse.
However, all optimism went down the drain for the fans at Cristal Arena when Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain netted his first goal in just less than two minutes. After a few passes just outside the box, Oxlade-Chamberlain launched a low long-range strike that found its way to the net for Liverpool.
Genk had their first chance of the evening when Paul Onuachu blazed past Liverpool defenders in the eighth minute, but his straight ball went to the hands of Alisson Becker for an easy save.
The home team followed that up in resounding fashion at the 25th minute when Mbwana Samatta headed home a lovely cross from the right side. However, the referees waved it off as it was considered offside, which was very unfortunate.
Mohamed Salah tried to do a header of his own to add on to their lead few minutes later, but his shot was overcooked to the left side.
The first half ended with both teams failing to create chances as they misfired their shots and passes. The second half, however, showed a different story.
Fast forward to the 57th minute, Oxlade-Chamberlain brilliantly converted a right-foot tip after a pass by Roberto Firmino to score his second goal of the night, and that opened the floodgates for the Reds. He was subbed out from the game 10 minutes later when the game was virtually over.
Genk did all they could on the backline to keep things tight against the road team, but Liverpool was savvy enough to find small creases for more great chances.
Mohamed Salah did just that in the 77th minute as he flicked the ball right past Genk defenders to find Sadio Mane for a clinical finish. Genk goalkeeper Gaetan Coucke was a tad bit late for his dive which could’ve been another save from him.
Salah finally decided to join in the party for the Reds. When he got the ball inside the box in the 87th minute, the Egyptian striker used his ballhandling wizardry to move past four defenders for a masterful left side finish.
Stephen Odey finally scored one for Genk a minute later when the Reds’ defence was left scrambling for the ball inside the penalty area.
Sadio Mane tried to score his own brace in a counter-attack, but Gaetan Coucke’s foot got in the way this time for Genk.
Key statistics
The Reds have controlled the match from the get-go as they had more possession (75-per cent) and passes made (769).
With this win, Liverpool have now won 25 of their last 30 matches in all competitions so far this season. Genk, on the other hand, have played more matches than any other team in the Champions League without registering a victory (15 games).
Liverpool became the fourth English team to score 200 goals in the Champions League, after Chelsea (269), Arsenal (281), and Manchester United (373).
What’s next?
Liverpool will go back to Merseyside to host Tottenham in the Premier League on Monday, while Genk will go up against Cercie Brugge in the Belgian League on Sunday at home.
These teams will face once more in the fourth matchday of the Champions League on November 6th.
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