A quick response in Linz

Liverpool beat LASK 6-3 at the Raiffeisen Arena in Linz on Wednesday, 14 October, in their second league-phase match of the Champions League. Ronald Araujo opened the scoring in the 22nd minute with a header from a corner by Kostas Tsimikas, his first goal for the club. Bradley Barcola then scored twice before half-time, the first from a lay-off by Lewis Koumas. Robert Ljubicic reduced the deficit for the Austrian champions in the 63rd minute.

Barcola completed his hat-trick in the 66th minute with a finish from a low cross by Jeremie Frimpong, who had himself scored in the 51st minute. Koumas added Liverpool's sixth goal in the 72nd minute, and Florian Flecker scored twice late on for LASK.

Barcola's first treble

The hat-trick is the first of Barcola's senior career, which has now reached 238 appearances for club and country. The French forward had been criticised for lacklustre displays since his £123 million move from Paris Saint-Germain in August, and his first six appearances for Liverpool had brought no goals. Florian Wirtz, who had gone eight competitive matches without a goal, set up one of Barcola's goals, and Iraola said the two players had been trusted.

“I think they feel that we trust them a lot.”

Iraola praised both players for controlling the game and for making a difference, and he said Barcola had looked a threat in one-on-one situations. Koumas said after the match that the forward had shown how good he is.

“I'm really happy that he showed how good he is tonight. He's an unbelievable talent.”

Context and team selection

The win followed Liverpool's first defeat of the season, a 3-0 loss at Anfield to Manchester City on Sunday, 11 October, which ended a run of eight games unbeaten under Iraola. For the trip to Linz, Iraola rested Virgil van Dijk, Milos Kerkez, Alexis Mac Allister and Victor Munoz. Alexander Isak, Cody Gakpo and Dominik Szoboszlai were absent through injury. The starting line-up had an average age of 24 years and 186 days, the third youngest in Champions League history, and 19-year-old Trey Nyoni played 85 minutes in his second start of the season. The trip was the second of six games in 18 days for the club.

Reactions and what comes next

After the City defeat, Liverpool great Jamie Carragher said on Sky that Wirtz should be taken out of the starting line-up, arguing that the arrangement had not worked with the German. Steven Gerrard, also a former Liverpool player, urged patience on Sky's The Overlap, saying it was too early to write Wirtz off and that he needed help from the coach and experienced players. Liverpool remain unbeaten in the competition after their opening win over Atlético Madrid. Next they travel to Brentford in the Premier League on Saturday, 17 October, and then face Villarreal in the Champions League three days later.