LIVERPOOL, England (AP) — Liverpool continued its 100 percent start to the UEFA Champions League with a 2-0 win over Real Madrid on Wednesday, putting the reigning European champions in danger of missing out on qualifying for the knockout stages .
Second-half goals from Alexis Mac Allister and Cody Gakpo at Anfield sealed Liverpool's fifth straight Champions League win and moved Arne Slot's team two points clear at the top of the table. It was the Reds' first win over Los Blancos in the Champions League since March 3, 2009, ending an eight-game winning streak against the Spanish capital club (a span of seven defeats).
But Real, who won the Champions League for the 15th time against Borussia Dortmund at Wembley last season, have lost three of five games so far and are in 24th place – the final qualifying spot for the playoff phase in February.
Kylian Mbappé had a chance to equalize for Madrid when he saved a penalty from Liverpool goalkeeper Caoimhín Kelleher as the home team made it 1-0. The penalty drama also hit Liverpool when Mohamed Salah missed his spot kick in the 70th minute.
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Real now face a tough game against UEFA Europa League champions Atalanta on matchday six next month as they look to boost their hopes of qualifying for the next stage of the competition. – Mark Ogden
Mbappé and Salah both miss, Mbappé's goal is costly
No one will have been more pleased to see Salah send his second-half penalty wide at Anfield than Mbappé, who saw his own spot-kick saved nine minutes earlier. Salah's miss took at least some of the attention away from Mbappé after a truly disastrous evening for the Madrid striker.
After a rocky start to life at the Bernabeú, this was the France international's biggest opportunity yet to impress in a Madrid shirt. Instead, it was his season so far in microcosm. In 90 minutes, Mbappé only had two shots, one on goal, and that was the penalty. He attempted just 22 passes – only Ferland Mendy had fewer – and completed 16 of them.
The penalty could have changed his evening and Madrid would have been right back in the game with the score at 1-1. Instead, Mbappé falsified his text. His performance will be scrutinized in the Madrid media on Thursday and fans' patience won't last forever.
Salah's miss was less costly – even if it was a worse attempt – and could soon be forgotten in light of Liverpool's victory. But it wasn't what he needed either, the week he admitted he was “more out than in” at Anfield having not received a new contract offer.
However, Salah is a Liverpool legend and his team has enjoyed success both domestically and in Europe. Mbappé is just starting in Madrid and with three out of five defeats, the Champions League season is already getting out of control. –Alex Kirkland
Liverpool's perfect start to the Champions League season continued on Wednesday, defeating Real Madrid at Anfield. Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images
Kelleher lives up to Klopp's nickname
If Kelleher's Liverpool career so far could be summed up in a single moment, perhaps it would be his superb penalty against Mbappé.
The man who Jürgen Klopp once described as “the best No. 2 in the world” and who remained uninvolved for most of the evening against Madrid, once again lived up to his title and became the first goalkeeper to beat the French in the Champions League They laid the foundations for Liverpool to claim a famous victory against their European nemesis.
In fact, Kelleher can no longer be considered “No. 2”. The Brazilian's ongoing problems with a hamstring injury have seen him play more times for Liverpool than Alisson Becker in 2024.
He didn't let the Slot team down on Wednesday evening either and saved the hosts' clean slate with a few last-minute saves. While the impending arrival of Giorgi Mamardashvili from Valencia certainly means that Kelleher's long-term future lies away from Anfield, his continued brilliance in Alisson's absence means that if or when he does depart, he will do so as a cult hero. – Beth Lindop
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Bradley gives Alexander-Arnold a look into the future
Trent Alexander-Arnold may have had an uncomfortable glimpse of the future as he sat on the Liverpool substitutes' bench as his team-mates beat Real Madrid.
On the one hand, the Liverpool full-back will have seen Conor Bradley put in an impressive performance at right-back, showing he is more than capable of keeping Alexander-Arnold out of the team once he is fully fit. And with endless speculation linking Alexander-Arnold with a free agent move to Real next summer if he doesn't sign a new contract at Anfield, the 26-year-old may have just learned that the La Liga Giants are a team just six months into relegation months after winning the Champions League and that a move to the Santiago Bernabeú may not be the dream it once seemed.
However, this evening was really all about Bradley, the impressive 21-year-old who was outstanding against Real.
The Northern Ireland international set the tone with a tough tackle on Mbappé in the first half, which drew huge celebrations from The Kop. As a full-back, he continued to deliver a rock-solid performance and also posed a threat on offense.
Bradley only failed to score when Thibaut Courtois parried his close-range header with a world-class save in the second half.
If Liverpool are afraid of losing Alexander-Arnold, that really shouldn't be the case. –Ogden
Conor Bradley's performances at right-back caused a stir among the Anfield crowd against Madrid on Wednesday. Richard Callis/Eurasia Sport Images/Getty Images
Bellingham feels Anfield's wrath
Jude Bellingham gave a blunt press conference before that game in which he spoke of being made a “scapegoat” after England failed to win Euro 2024. He also dismissed speculation that he almost moved to Liverpool before joining Real Madrid in 2023 because Real was on a “different level”.
Bellingham's comments about Liverpool resulted in him being booed by the Anfield crowd every time he touched the ball. It seemed to have an impact on his performance as the 21-year-old was weak against Slot's side.
Liverpool midfielders Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch dominated Bellingham, both in physical challenges and with the ball, and he spent most of the game trying to make an impact.
In Bellingham's defense, he played a deeper role than he normally enjoys. Carlo Ancelotti deployed him in the left midfield behind the three of Mbappé, Brahim Díaz and Arda Güler.
But just like England at Euro 2024, when the game passes him by, Bellingham offers little and his frustration becomes clear. This game was another example, and it couldn't have been worse timed considering Bellingham had complained about his treatment after the Euros.
When a player talks about being misjudged or treated harshly, the best way to prove his point is usually on the field. At Anfield he was eventually overshadowed by two of the players Liverpool recruited after they withdrew from the race to sign him 18 months ago. –Ogden
