Bradley Barcola’s clinical hat-trick inspires Liverpool to 6-3 rout of Lask

Liverpool cleansed themselves from the stains of defeat by Manchester City at the earliest opportunity. A rampant display in Austria saw Bradley Barcola ignite his Liverpool account with the first hat-trick of his professional career and Andoni Iraola’s team devastate Lask’s big night in the Champions League. The major surprise was how the hosts managed to score three. Iraola’s pre-match faith in the big-money signings Barcola and Florian Wirtz was repaid as the pair helped dismantle limited opponents. But it was not all about the money and the £123m signing from Paris Saint-Germain scoring the first goals of his Liverpool career. Lewis Koumas registered his first goal in the competition and replaced Steven Gerrard as the youngest player to score and assist in a Champions League game for Liverpool. A total of 26 shots equalled Liverpool’s record in a Champions League away game. Continue reading...