Trailing after less than three minutes of play, Liverpool did not panic and won 3-1 on the AC Milan pitch thanks in particular to two almost identical headed goals. Presented as one of the matches of the first day of the new C1 formula, the clash between the Rossoneri and the Reds, thirteen C1 titles between them, lived up to all its promises, with four goals and twists and turns, before being marked by the injury exit of the French team’s goalkeeper Mike Maignan.
AC Milan had started the match ideally by opening the scoring on their first move thanks to Christian Pulisic (3rd). Ibrahima Konate put the two teams back to back (23rd) by deceiving Maignan header. On a corner, the Milanese goalkeeper then remained stuck on his line and was beaten by Virgil van Dijk who, also with a header, logically gave Liverpool the advantage (40th).
Maignan’s bad night wasn’t over yet: shortly after returning from the locker room, he was violently hit by Jota and had to leave his teammates complaining of a sore right knee. On his first-team debut, reserve team goalkeeper Lorenzo Torrian, 19, was helpless when Dominik Szoboszlai found himself alone at the far post (67th) to add a third goal.
If Liverpool sent a strong message to the competition, AC Milan is already on the brink of a new crisis. San Siro booed their team at the final whistle and Paulo Fonsecawho succeeded Stefano Pioli in June, will probably play a big role in the derby against Inter on Sunday in the league.
