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It wasn’t perfect – it never is, in his eyes – but how he enjoyed it. Arne Slot thought the 42nd minute was going to be the big take away from his birthday, instead it was the 92nd as the masters of the late winner pulled off another great escape.
What a remarkable night this was: a game won, thrown away then won again with an extraordinary header from Virgil van Dijk, all featuring the pantomime villain, Diego Simeone, being ordered down the tunnel for losing his cool and a squabble on the touchline that UEFA will almost certainly review.
Liverpool versus Atletico Madrid had the potential to be a blockbuster, a night when the stadium crackled with nervous energy, and so it proved as it became an occasion that seemed to have a place in next May’s final in Budapest riding on it.
Slot will have much to digest in the next 48 hours and, for sure, will bemoan two goals conceded but when he settles down, his eye will be drawn to one passage of play put together by a duo who cost £241million that provided a glimpse into the future.
Florian Wirtz and Aleksander Isak should, of course, be good for that price but you take nothing for granted in football. Let’s us go to that moment, then, when a roar ripped around the stadium, fuelled by giddy excitement about the potential for a devastating partnership.
Off went Wirtz from the left, midway inside Atletico’s half, the ball glued to his feet. On the touchline, Diego Simeone waved his arms as frantically as an anxious Wall Street trader, as the German took on the role of a confidence trickster: first the ball was there, those in Blue could see it, then it was gone.
Virgil van Djik scored a stoppage time winner as Liverpool won 3-2 against Atletico Madrid
The Liverpool captain headed Liverpool back ahead after the Reds had let a 2-0 lead slip
Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone was sent off in the aftermath following a clash with fans
All the while, though, Isak – so evidently rusty after a summer of dissent in the North East – was watching and peeled away into space. No 7 found No 9 (a certain generation will immediately think Dalglish and Rush) and, almost immediately, a deft return from No 9 allowed No 7 to scuttle free.
Around Jan Oblak, Atletico’s keeper, Wirtz went but he just couldn’t apply the finishing touch nor could Jeremie Frimpong, who was running in like an express train. No matter. The audience had seen enough and gave their noisy seal of approval.
Why focus on this? This, essentially, is what it is going to become about for the Premier League champions, as they attempt to retain their domestic crown and then conquer Europe, a double that Liverpool have not completed since 1984.
Slot has preached since the closure of the window that spending was essential for Liverpool this summer but he is being coy: Liverpool went as big as they did because they want to become the dominant force and Isak and Wirtz are going to be cornerstones of this twin assault.
Both men were substituted at varying points in the second half. Isak, for 25 minutes of his eagerly-anticipated debut, looked tentative and happy to stay on the periphery as the old guard took charge against Atleti, whose game plan disintegrated the moment Salah’s free-kick deflected off Robertson.
You may have seen Simeone’s theatrics may times down the years but they never anything but entertaining, every misplaced pass looks like it might bring him to tears, every failure to shut down play leaves him hissing like a grenade that is about to go pop.
He had been taken to the point of exasperation inside six minutes as Liverpool threatened to run amok. Salah’s goal, which came after left Javier Galan, Connor Gallagher and Nico Gonzalez toiling in his wake, was a thing of beauty.
With Atletico at sixes and sevens, you were left with the feeling that Liverpool might score six or seven in the first half because they had the bit between their teeth and the energy to run amok. Salah, especially, is making those who think his form is patchy reassess their opinions.
Mohamed Salah scored a superb individual effort as Liverpool raced into a 2-0 lead at Anfield
The Liverpool talisman struck as the host's scored twice in the opening six minutes
Alexander Isak was handed his Liverpool debut but understandly the forward looked rusty
Marcos Llorente pulled a goal back for Atletico Madrid on the stroke of half-time at Anfield
Llorente's fine volley saw the visitors level the match at 2-2 before Van Dijk's late winner
Simeone was shown his marching orders after an incident which UEFA will surely review
Had Wirtz scored the goal that moved deserved just before half-time, then there is no question Liverpool would have gone on to take three points but the had been a whiff of complacency about them – and definitely in the crowd – and Marcos Llorente changed the tone in first half injury time.
Almost from nowhere, he poked in a shot after beating the offside trap. All around the stadium there were looks of accusation, someone hadn’t done their job in a certain part of the field, but it was pointless. The damage had been done.
Off went Simeone, haring down the tunnel, and he clearly knew that there was the potential to pilfer something in the second period. He has a reputation for being a spoiler, a man invested in the darker side of football, but it is a nonsense to think that when you see the forwards he’s coached.
Atletico remain a fabulous club, one that should really have won this competition during his remarkable tenure, and they kept jabbing away in the second period. Liverpool had their chances, couldn’t finish them and then Llorente popped the balloon, with a volley that deflected off Alexis Mac Alliser on its way in.
Onto the pitch Simeone went, like he had found the winning ticket for the Euromillions, unable to contain his joy. And off the pitch he went in the final minutes, sent-off after one eruption too many, after Van Dijk had given Slot all he wanted.
