Van Dijk’s Stoppage-Time Header Gives Liverpool Dramatic Champions League Win
Liverpool produced another late show at Anfield as Virgil van Dijk’s injury-time header secured a 3-2 victory over Atletico Madrid in their Champions League opener.
The night began in blistering fashion for Arne Slot’s side, with Mohamed Salah at the heart of everything. Just four minutes in, his free-kick took a deflection off Andrew Robertson to beat Jan Oblak, before the Egyptian doubled the advantage moments later, finishing neatly after combining with Ryan Gravenberch.
Atletico, typically resilient, struck back on the stroke of half-time when Marcos Llorente slipped in behind and poked a shot under Alisson, halving the deficit and shifting the momentum.
Liverpool continued to control after the break, with Alexander Isak making his long-awaited debut before being replaced on 58 minutes. Salah almost restored the two-goal cushion when he struck the post following excellent build-up play from Florian Wirtz, but it was Diego Simeone’s side who found the next breakthrough.
With nine minutes left, Llorente once again punished Liverpool, this time his volley glancing off Alexis Mac Allister to wrong-foot Alisson and make it 2-2 — a reminder of his decisive brace in Atletico’s famous Anfield win back in 2020.
The hosts, however, were not finished. Deep into stoppage time, Van Dijk rose highest at a corner to thump a header beyond Oblak, sending Anfield into raptures and maintaining Liverpool’s early-season habit of scoring late winners.
The drama did not end there: Atletico boss Simeone was shown a red card amid chaotic scenes after appearing to clash with supporters behind his technical area.
Liverpool, the reigning Premier League champions, now carry their domestic momentum onto the European stage — and with Salah shining alongside a dominant Van Dijk, they signalled their intent to mount another serious challenge for the Champions League crown.
