Liverpool overcame LASK in the Europa League on Thursday night to kick off their group-stage journey.
But it was not the perfect performance — Liverpool went behind in the first half and only turned the game around as the second period wore on. Darwin Nunez scored from the penalty spot before Luis Diaz fired in the second and Mohamed Salah capped off the scoring to give the visitors a 3-1 win.
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There will be plenty to take away from the game for both fans and manager Jurgen Klopp.
The Athletic’s Liverpool experts, James Pearce and Andy Jones, have pulled together their key talking points from the game.
Momentum has been maintained… just
A milestone victory for Klopp but Liverpool were made to sweat for it on a balmy night in Austria.
The hard-fought 3-1 triumph over LASK was the 50th European win of Klopp’s reign. He’s the first manager in the club’s history to reach that landmark, surpassing Rafael Benitez’s tally of 49.
Ultimately, their greater class shone through, but they made life difficult for themselves against their Austrian hosts.
It was in keeping with their domestic exploits this season — plenty of sloppy mistakes but another demonstration of their ability to recover. Just like at Molineux last weekend, they looked like a different team in the second half with much greater urgency and intensity.
Making 11 changes from that win over Wolverhampton Wanderers was a gamble, but that is no excuse for the meagre first-half display in Austria. Liverpool had their two first-choice centre-backs reunited in Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate, two summer signings in midfield and £115million ($141.4m) worth of attacking talent out there in Nunez and Diaz. They repeatedly gave away possession cheaply and their decision-making was poor. LASK deserved their lead courtesy of Florian Flecker.
Whatever was said at half-time did the trick. Once Nunez fired them level from the spot, there was an air of inevitability about what followed, especially when you’re bringing on substitutes with the class of Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboszlai and Salah.
The goals from Diaz and Salah showed their quality. Klopp had insisted they would embrace life in the Europa League. They did, belatedly. Momentum has been maintained.
James Pearce
Bajcetic doing the ‘Trent role’
It had been a discussion point all summer — who would stand in for Trent Alexander-Arnold when he’s not playing?
In Austria, with Conor Bradley injured and Joe Gomez rested, we discovered one alternative option. In a surprise selection, Stefan Bajcetic’s first appearance since March 11 came as Alexander-Arnold’s replacement in the inverted full-back role.
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Bajcetic originally arrived at Liverpool’s academy as a centre-back, so possesses the defensive awareness needed for the position. He transitioned into a midfielder, the position he broke through in last season.
After so long out, playing in an unfamiliar position added an element of difficulty to the match and the 18-year-old was not helped by the performances of those around him.
In the first half, Bajcetic was balanced in his positioning, sometimes retaining Liverpool’s width as a right-back and on other occasions sliding inside to help build play.
It was in the opening 15 minutes of the second half that we saw the benefit of a midfielder playing in that role. Bajcetic moved central more often as Liverpool gained control and helped dictate play. His passing range is exceptional and we began to see more of it.
He was crucial in winning Liverpool’s penalty, darting into the box and delivering the cross that led to Diaz being fouled.
It was an experiment that looked like an early work in progress. It could prove to be an interesting and exciting option for Klopp to use when opportunities arrive in the future.
Andy Jones
Gravenberch’s encouraging start
With the scores at 1-1, Ryan Gravenberch burst beyond the LASK back line. One look up and, after receiving a pass from Harvey Elliott, he arrows a low cross right into the path of Diaz.
The Colombian makes no mistake and, just like that, Gravenberch had his first assist in a… well… purple shirt.
Gravenberch would not have enjoyed the opening 45 minutes of his first start for Liverpool, but the attributes that made Klopp want to sign him were on display.
Time and again, the midfielder cleverly positioned himself in pockets of space to receive the ball on the half-turn.
The forward-thinking, ball-progressing midfielder, who rose to prominence at Ajax, drove Liverpool forward. His tall, wiry frame allowed him to change direction quickly and burst forward at pace.
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There were plenty of nice touches and link-ups with his team-mates, including a one-two with Harvey Elliott in the first half that nearly put Gravenberch in on goal.
There was some rustiness about Gravenberch, which is not surprising considering his lack of football at Bayern Munich last season. His passing in the final third occasionally lacked killer conviction, but he was far from the only culprit in a disappointing collective performance.
He improved in the second half and, as the game opened up, he looked more comfortable on and off the ball.
The only negative of the evening was his departure as he limped off with 17 minutes remaining. Liverpool will be hoping it is nothing serious.
Andy Jones
Doak’s dream week – and night he should be proud of
What a week for teenager Ben Doak. No sooner had the ink dried on a new long-term contract, the Scottish winger was handed his first Liverpool start in the din of the Raiffeisen Arena.
Doak’s development has been eye-catching since he arrived on Merseyside from Celtic in the summer of 2022. Liverpool were inundated with loan offers for him this summer but those were rebuffed — Klopp already had the 17-year-old in his plans.
He’s effectively Salah’s deputy on the right flank and with the Egyptian beginning the game on the bench, this was a golden opportunity for Doak to impress.
During an underwhelming first-half display from Klopp’s side, Doak provided one of the few positives. He had the beating of Rene Renner every time with his pace and trickery. One cross-shot flew agonisingly wide of the far post.
Doak, whose previous six senior appearances for Liverpool had all been off the bench, is so positive and direct. Not everything he tried came off, but he never hid. He continued to demand the ball and when he lost it, he worked tirelessly to win it back.
Subbed after an hour, Doak was watching on when Liverpool properly took control after a ragged start, but he could be proud of his night’s work.
James Pearce
(Top photo: Getty Images)