How the national media reacted to Liverpool’s 1-0 win at Inter in the Champions League on Tuesday evening
Now that was much more like it. Liverpool moved on to four games unbeaten with a deserved 1-0 Champions League victory at Italian giants Inter in Milan on Tuesday evening.
With Mohamed Salah left at home, the task instead fell to Dominik Szoboszlai to convert from the spot two minutes from time after substitute Florian Wirtz had his shirt pulled by home defender Alessandro Bastoni.
It made for an encouraging evening. And while the ECHO was in attendance and provided our usual level of coverage, here’s how the national media viewed a positive result for Arne Slot’s side.
READ MORE: ‘That’s his opinion’ – Arne Slot responds to Mohamed Salah Liverpool apology claims
Writing in the Independent, Richard Jolly couldn’t help but notice how Salah would have been stepping up to take the late penalty were it not for his self-inflicted absence.
“A penalty to win it at San Siro,” he writes. “Perhaps Mohamed Salah, wherever he was watching it, reflected that he could have been taking it. Instead, with the Egyptian in exile, it was Dominik Szoboszlai, who first took his spot on the right wing and now his role as the spot-kick specialist, who dispatched it, brilliantly.
“And this was a brilliant win for Arne Slot, a brilliant night for Liverpool. Salah missed it, missed the chance to secure a famous victory. Because what started out as the calm after the storm, a quietly ordered performance, became something more. Liverpool have beaten Arsenal and Real Madrid but the context made this their best result of the season.
“Generous as the award of the penalty was, it produced an endorsement of a beleaguered manager. Slot showed he could win in Milan without Salah; without a host of others, too. His name echoed from the top tiers of one of Europe’s great grounds, chanted by the Liverpool supporters. In a week when Slot has been tested, he emerged triumphant and popular.”
Andy Hunter, formerly of this parish, pointed out in The Guardian how this was a team playing for their manager.
“Slot needed at the bare minimum a committed display from his team to counter allegations that Salah’s criticisms are shared by others in the dressing room,” he says. “He got commitment and much more. The visitors produced a vastly improved defensive performance and worked tirelessly to stifle a dangerous Inter team that have reached two of the past three Champions League finals.
“A deserved point appeared to be Liverpool’s reward until the video assistant referee sent the German official Felix Zwayer to the pitchside monitor to review Bastoni’s infringement. Szoboszlai swept his spot‑kick high into Yann Sommer’s top corner and Inter’s 18-match unbeaten home run in Europe was over. The release for Liverpool was palpable.”
In the Daily MailLewis Steele looked at the tactical change made by Arne Slot that helped Liverpool to victory.
“For 88 minutes, in truth, there was little to write home about on postcards sent back to Salah – and the Egyptian can still take solace from his sofa by knowing that, unlike the title of the 1971 James Bond film and accompanying Shirley Bassey soundtrack, diamonds are not for ever,” he scribes.
“If they were, there might be no space for a right winger no matter what he says in the press.
“That is because Slot has evolved his setup from the tried-and-tested way that won them the Premier League and. And although his 4-4-2 diamond has thus far failed to sparkle in an attacking sense, it has made them more solid and the defensive foundations were the best part of this win.”
Finally, Mike McGrath of The Telegraph highlighted how the away support signified their support for Slot.
“Arne Slot walked over to the Liverpool fans after the final whistle and saluted those in the top tier here at San Siro,” he writes. “They had chanted the Dutchman’s name during this famous European win, which he masterminded in the fallout of the row with Mohamed Salah that has threatened to rip the club apart.
“There is a complex dynamic between supporters, manager and their greatest goalscorer since Ian Rush, and one which has more twists in the next days when the final game is played before Salah travels to the Africa Cup of Nations.
“But this night belonged to Slot. After keeping last year’s Champions League finalists quiet, there was a winning penalty from Dominik Szoboszlai which was more than deserved after a mature performance in Milan.
“The chanting of Slot’s name came well before the winner and it is clear that, however the saga turns out, Slot’s work in a year-and-a-half on Merseyside has not been forgotten. This was not anti-Salah, as Jamie Carragher passionately articulated this week. But it certainly felt like a big moment for Slot.”
