It was not the best of nights for Super Eagles winger Samuel Chukwueze, as he was caged in Villarreal’s 2-0 loss to Liverpool at Anfield in Wednesday’s Champions League first leg tie.
Chukwueze was the hero for Villarreal in the second leg quarter-final clash against Bayern after netting the equalizer which sent his side into the last four.
But it was a night to forget at Anfield following a dominant display by the Reds which saw Chukwueze and his teammates failing to create anything meaningful.
After a frustrating outing, he was eventually replaced by Unai Emery who brought on Boulaye Dia.
And after a dominating first half which ended goalless an own goal by Pervis Estupinan and a Sadio Mane strike earned Liverpool the deserved win, putting Jurgen Klopp’s side on course for their third European Cup final in five seasons.
Villarreal defended in numbers in the first half to frustrate the six-times European Cup winners, with Thiago Alcantara going closest to breaking the deadlock with a thunderous strike from distance that hit the post.
Liverpool turned it up a notch after the break and moments after Brazilian midfielder Fabinho had seen one effort ruled out for offside, Jordan Henderson’s cross was deflected into his own net by Estupinan to break Villarreal’s resistance on 53 minutes.
Able to express themselves with the deadlock broken, Mohamed Salah threaded a sublime pass through for Mane to put the game beyond the visitors in the 55th minute.
The reverse fixture will take place in Spain next week Tuesday.
3 Comments
Just passing thru.
Picking up speed.
Vrrrrooooom! I don gooooo!
Salah and Mane contribution. Game changers. I believe some of our players will rise to be this if they work harder and keep their heads.
Salah and Mane are both 30. If you look critically at the trajectory of their progress it all began to explode about 4 5 years ago. In their mid 20s. Chukwueze and Osimhen are only 22 or 23 therefore, they have room to grow and eclipse their potentials.
Despite not being fully fit all season Chukwueze has still scored 6 goals for Villarreal so far this season and as many assists. We still have the players to make Nigeria proud in the nearest future. I’m just hoping we can discover a real midfield playmaker who will be comfortable with the ball at his feet in the mold of at least a Mikel or a Mutiu to unleash our attackers in tight games.
If this generation can find a midfielder in such ilk or better they will be a team to reckon with in the next few years. We just need a good foreign coach who is willing to develop our players mentality.