Bradley Barcola scored his first Champions League hat-trick as Liverpool defeated LASK 6-3 in Linz on Tuesday, handing the club a crucial win after a 3-0 loss to Manchester City. The 24-year-old forward, signed for £123m, had been under scrutiny since the season began, but his performance silenced doubters with two precise finishes from his right and left foot, followed by a tap-in after the break.
Liverpool manager Andoni Iraola had defended Barcola and his fellow expensive recruit Florian Wirtz, signed for £116m, ahead of the match. Wirtz contributed with an assist and a strong display, but Barcola’s goals made the difference. “I’m really happy for Bradley,” Iraola said after the game. “You were asking me yesterday about him not making the numbers and [the same with] Florian, and I think both of them played really, really well today. I think they made a difference.”
Iraola praised Barcola’s threat in one-on-one situations and his ability to find space. “He helped us a lot in controlling the game by finding the pockets. I am happy for both of them. I think for their confidence it’s very good. I think they feel now that we trust them a lot.”
Barcola’s hat-trick came in his 238th career appearance across clubs and country. Iraola said he sensed the player was in good form even during training the day before. “Sometimes you feel these things [are going to happen]. We were feeling he was in a good place going into the game.”
The match swung heavily in Liverpool’s favour early on. They raced into a three-goal lead in the first half and recorded 19 shots before the break—the most by any team in a Champions League away game since the 2003-04 season. The Austrian Bundesliga champions struggled to contain Liverpool’s pace and creativity.
There was room for criticism after LASK scored three goals following the hour mark, but Liverpool’s dominance was already established. The game also saw strong performances from Liverpool’s full-backs. Jeremie Frimpong scored and assisted twice, while Kostas Tsimikas provided two assists. Ronald Araujo scored his first goal for Liverpool since joining that summer, and 21-year-old Lewis Koumas got on the scoresheet after having two goals disallowed for offside.
Koumas also assisted Barcola in the first half, making him the youngest Liverpool player to score and assist in a Champions League match at 21 years and 25 days, beating Steven Gerrard’s previous record set in 2001 against Dynamo Kyiv.
Despite the victory, former Liverpool player Stephen Warnock cautioned against reading too much into the result. LASK entered the game winless in their last four matches and were passive for large parts, allowing Liverpool’s midfield freedom. “Trey Nyoni in midfield… has literally got no pressure on him at all, he is picking passes off,” Warnock said on BBC 5 Live. “Barcola has got the run of his full-back who was taken off at half-time, which tells you everything.”
Warnock pointed to Liverpool’s upcoming Premier League match at Brentford as a more significant test for Barcola. The Bees sit fourth in the table and remain unbeaten in the league. “Can Barcola do that again, away at Brentford, because that is what they have essentially bought him for, to play in big games away from home,” Warnock said. “He hasn’t played that much football this season so [this game] was about getting minutes in his legs and getting him fit and getting him sharper. The acid test will be Brentford away.”
Liverpool’s win in Linz ends a brief slump and moves them forward in the Champions League group, but the challenge of translating this form into the Premier League remains.
According to Joy Online.
