JAKARTA - Liverpool qualified for the quarter-finals to face Paris Saint-Germain again after winning 4-1 over Galatasaray in the second leg of the Champions League 16th round at Anfield Stadium, Thursday, March 19, 2026 WIB. In that match, Liverpool star Mohamed Salah set a record.
Salah showed maximum performance which marked the revival of Liverpool. After reaping disappointing results in the last two matches by defeating Galatasaray 1-0 and then drawing 1-1 against Tottenham Hotspur in the English Premier League, Liverpool returned to the winning track.
When hosting Galatasaray in the second leg of the 16-year-old, Liverpool had to work hard after losing one goal. Again, the Reds were under pressure because of their unstable performance in the domestic competition. As a result, Liverpool's desire to enter the top four to get a ticket to compete in the Champions League next season is always hampered.
Manager Arne Slot has also come under scrutiny for spending big on players, but Liverpool have failed to retain the league title.
Even rumors have circulated that Slot will be fired and his position will be replaced by Xabi Alonso who is still unemployed after being dismissed by Real Madrid. Especially after he was booed by his own supporters when Liverpool failed to win against Tottenham.
While in a state of despair, Liverpool actually rose by beating Galatasaray four goals without reply. In that match, Mohamed Salah also contributed a goal which made him set a record in European competitions. Salah became the first African player to score 50 goals in the Champions League when he led Liverpool to a 4-1 aggregate lead and qualified for the quarter finals.
The brilliant performance shown by Salah et al. made Slot feel satisfied. According to him, the team played very well from the first minute as desired.
"From the beginning to the end, we played as I expected. A game that is also expected from the players and fans. This is a near-perfect match for us and especially the fans," Slot said as quoted by the UEFA website.
"We should have won 10-0. But we did a good job. This is what makes us proud," striker Hugo Ekitike added.
Slot also did not hesitate to praise Salah who failed to finish the penalty but was able to bounce back and score a goal in the second half to reach the 50-goal milestone. Not only that, the captain of the Egyptian national team also made assists that were completed by Ekitike and Ryan Gravenberch.
"[The goal] has said a lot about him. After his penalty missed, he then made an assist and finally scored a goal. He showed a strong mentality," Slot said again.
In that match, Liverpool still got a fight from Galatasaray who tried to score one goal to slow down the home team. Striker Victor Osimhen had threatened Liverpool's defense in the early minutes of the match.
However, the back line under the command of captain Virgil van Dijk was so solid that it could not be penetrated by the Galatasaray forward. Liverpool also dominated the game and finally midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai broke the deadlock in the 25th minute. He greeted Alexis McAllister's corner with a hard horizontal shot that brought Liverpool 1-0.
After the goal, Liverpool became more aggressive in pressing the opponent. At least Salah and Florian Wirtz got the opportunity to increase the lead. But their efforts were not successful.
Even the golden opportunity when getting a penalty gift could not be completed by Salah. The referee gave a penalty following a foul by defender Ismail Jakobs against Szoboszlai in the first half injury time. But Salah's kick could be blocked by goalkeeper Ugurcan Cakir.
Entering the second half, Liverpool continued to play offensively to increase the lead. The result was only in 11 minutes, Liverpool was able to score three goals at once.
Ekitike followed up by breaking Galatasaray's goal after receiving a perfect pass from Salah in the 51st minute. The goal that changed the score to 2-0 made Liverpool more aggressive attacking the opponent. It turned out that just two minutes later, Gravenberch had brought Liverpool ahead by three goals. He maximized the rebound after Salah's shot was blocked by the goalkeeper.
Salah then consolidated Liverpool's lead with a brilliant shot that slid into the top corner of the goal without being reached by goalkeeper Cakir in the 62nd minute. The score became 4-0 and lasted until the end of the match.
The victory over Galatasaray brings Liverpool to the quarter-finals to face defending champions PSG. This match is a repeat of last season when the two teams met in the last 16.
At that time, Liverpool won 1-0 at PSG's home. However, when playing at home at Anfield, Liverpool lost 1-0 so the match continued with a penalty shootout. PSG finally won 4-1.
Now, The Pool has the opportunity to complete the revenge. Only Slot admits that PSG is an extraordinary team and eliminated Chelsea with a score of 5-2 and 3-0.
"They are an amazing team. Last season, we faced them. At Anfield, we actually played fantastic. It was even my best game. Both teams really played entertaining football. We were the only team to force them to extra time and a penalty shootout. This season they also showed no decline," said Slot.
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