Liverpool have had a really topsy-turvy start to the new season and things haven’t exactly gone according to plan at all. The Reds sit 9th in the Premier League table and are second in their Champions League group as well.
After suffering a disappointing loss to Arsenal in the league last week, Jurgen Klopp’s side got a much-needed momentum booster in their trip to Rangers on Wednesday night.
They managed to absolutely rout the Scottish giants, going from being 1-0 down to win 7-1 on the night!
Roberto Firmino scored a brace, new signing Darwin Nunez also got in on the scoresheet and the misfiring Mohamed Salah finally regained some form – scoring a hattrick in the space of 6 minutes in the second half.
The performance almost seemed like a case of Liverpool venting out the frustrations of the Arsenal loss to Rangers, with the players bent on proving that they were anything but done competing for the title this season – which is still in its early stages.
But the game was a particularly special one for young midfielder Harvey Elliott. The 19-year-old also got in on the action, scoring the final goal of the game with a smart finish from a volley.
However, the goal wasn’t actually given at first and was ruled out by the linesman because Diogo Jota was offside in the build-up.
However, VAR came to Liverpool’s rescue to take a long and hard look at what had exactly transpired.
It was ultimately decided that Jota had not disturbed the play, meaning that the goal was allowed to stand.
Before that, it was a long watch for Elliott as he waited to see whether his first-ever strike in the Champions League was able to stand.
He found some solace in the form of Salah, who decided to give some reassurances to his younger peer. Mo went up to the 19-year-old to share some words with him and gave him a very warm hug from behind, which seemed to calm down Elliott a little bit.
In reality, Salah was also eager to see if it was going to stand or not as he has been a motivating figure for the young midfielder.
Elliott looked to be starting to do a little prayer as he hoped the goal would be given – all the while when Salah was behind him giving reassurances and helping keep his confidence levels up.
Ultimately, after a long VAR check, the referee finally blew for the whistle to signal the goal – relieving Elliott and his teammates.
Harvey went towards the fans to celebrate his historic strike with them, even though it was the 7th goal of a game that his side had thoroughly dominated.
Liverpool supporters seem to have really loved what they saw from the two players, especially with many considering Elliott to be a sort of a protégé to Salah.