Berlin: Liverpool made it three wins on the bounce as Darwin’s lone goal secured a narrow 1-0 victory over a tenacious RB Leipzig side in the third round.
Leipzig came into the game highly motivated and put Liverpool on the back foot as Amadou Haidara tested goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher, while Benjamin Sesko’s dangerous curled shot went just wide in the opening stages.
It took Liverpool some time to get going, but they shocked the home side with their first chance in the 27th minute when Darwin tapped home Mo Salah’s header from close range, reports Xinhua.
Leipzig goalkeeper Peter Gulacsi was forced to tip promising headers from Darwin and Virgil van Dijk over the bar as the visitors gained momentum.
The Reds almost doubled their advantage on the stroke of half-time, but Cody Gakpo shot wide from close range after Dominik Szoboszlai’s good build-up work.
Leipzig tried to respond after the restart but were too hasty in the final third to create any clear-cut chances against the well-organized visitors.
Liverpool were the more threatening side in front of the goal as Alexis Mac Allister hit the woodwork with a shot from 16 meters in 70 minutes.
Leipzig came to life and created good chances, with Kelleher saving Sesko’s effort two minutes later before Lois Openda’s 83rd-minute equalizer was ruled out for offside.
The home side continued to search for an equalizer but failed to create any further chances, while Gakpo was denied a goal in the closing stages.
The result leaves Leipzig waiting for their first points of the Champions League campaign, while Liverpool extend their perfect run to three wins from three games and move up to second in the table.
“It wasn’t enough in the end. We controlled the tempo early on, but Liverpool are Premier League leaders for a reason. We lacked precision in the final third. Our performance was okay, but we failed to take our chances against top clubs,” said Leipzig captain Willi Orban.
IANS