Liverpool Rallies From Two Goals Down to Beat Villarreal 4–3
Alexis Mac Allister scores twice and 18-year-old Rio Ngumoha sets up two goals, the youngest Liverpool player to assist in Europe
Villarreal led 2–0 at Anfield before the half hour, after Georges Mikautadze and Sergi Cardona scored. Liverpool tied it before halftime and scored twice in three minutes midway through the second half to win 4–3.
Alexis Mac Allister headed in a corner for the first Liverpool goal and scored from close range for the third. Ronald Araújo, on loan from Barcelona, headed in the second. Florian Wirtz, a halftime substitute, scored the fourth, his first club goal of the season. Tani Oluwaseyi pulled one back for Villarreal in the 87th minute.
Rio Ngumoha, 18, set up two of the goals and was named player of the match. At 18 years and 52 days, he is the youngest player in Liverpool history to record an assist in European competition.
Liverpool has won all three of its league-phase matches and has nine points. Villarreal has three.
Liverpool came back from 2–0 down and beat Villarreal 4–3 at Anfield behind two goals from Alexis Mac Allister and two assists from 18-year-old Rio Ngumoha.
The crowd was 59,610. Andoni Iraola made six changes from Liverpool's weekend win at Brentford.
Villarreal scored in the fourth minute. Virgil van Dijk's header back to Alisson Becker fell short, and Georges Mikautadze scored from a difficult angle on the left. In the 29th minute, Sergi Cardona finished a counterattack from Nathan Saliba's pass to make it 2–0.
Liverpool answered before the break. Mac Allister headed in Kostas Tsimikas's corner in the 36th minute. In first-half stoppage time, Ngumoha crossed and Ronald Araújo, on loan from Barcelona, headed it in from the right side of the six-yard box for 2–2 at halftime.
Florian Wirtz replaced Araújo at the break.
In the 65th minute, Ngumoha beat Cardona and set up Mac Allister, who scored from close range. Three minutes later, Wirtz took a pass from Cody Gakpo and scored from the center of the box. It was his first club goal of the season.
Villarreal cut the lead in the 87th minute when Tani Oluwaseyi, who came on at halftime, volleyed in a cross from Ayoze Pérez.
Liverpool took 22 shots, seven on target, and had eight corners. Villarreal took 14 shots, five on target. Liverpool had 52.5 percent of possession. Villarreal received two yellow cards, to Alberto Moleiro and Santiago Mouriño.
Ngumoha was named player of the match. At 18 years and 52 days, he became the youngest Liverpool player to record an assist in European competition. Michael Owen had the record before him.
Liverpool has won all three of its league-phase matches and has nine points, level with Paris Saint-Germain at the top. Villarreal has three points.