HUGO EKITIKE provided a glimpse of his immeasurable talent at Wembley in front of a packed crowd but that was not enough to save his team from a defeat.
The new Reds striker picked his spot after a tidy pass from fellow newcomer Florian Wirtz, before leaving his marker for dead just four minutes into the game and planting the ball in the far corner, beyond the reach of Crystal Palace goalkeeper Dean Henderson.
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However, the early goal was ultimately in vain as the Eagles went on to win the match 3-2 on penalties.
Liverpool were dominant and deserved their early lead, but Palace, who got here after beating a wounded Manchester City side to lift the FA Cup, were no pushover.
They stung Arne Slot’s side when Jean-Philippe Mateta raced through and should have scored, but for a brilliant save from Alisson.
Not long after, Ismaila Sarr picked up the ball and drew a clumsy challenge from Virgil van Dijk in the box.
Referee Christopher Kavanagh pointed to the spot and Mateta stepped up to make amends, sending Alisson the wrong way to equalise, all of this happening in the first 17 minutes.
Four minutes later, Liverpool were back in front.
Another new signing, Jeremie Frimpong, attempted a cross that turned out to be a blessing in disguise as it flew over the hapless Henderson and into the net for the Eagles.
From there on, Liverpool tightened up at the back, gave away few chances, and should have been out of sight. Ekitike had two chances, both headers, that he should have scored.
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That would prove costly as Sarr first beat the offside line after a thread through the needle pass from Adam Wharton before firing past Alisson to make it 2-2, 13 minutes to go and force the game into penalties.
Mo Salah, Alexis Mac Allister and Harvey Elliott all missed their spot kicks as Palace made it their second trophy in a matter of months.
Here’s how SunSport reporter Rahman Osman rated the Liverpool players…
Alisson Becker – 7
Impressive save to deny Mateta in a one-on-one situation. Consistently came off his line to thwart danger. What makes him so effective is his calmness in precarious situations.
The gap between him and Liverpool’s last line was often wide, so he had to stay alert. He’d be gutted to have conceded twice.
Jeremie Frimpong – 7
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There may have been a bit of fortune with his goal, but his overall performance was impressive.
He showed all the signs of being a brilliant replacement for Trent Alexander-Arnold, pace, power and poise on and off the ball.
Ibrahima Konate – 6
One of the cornerstones on which Liverpool built last season. He looked comfortable for large parts of the game and showed steel nerves when he calmly dealt with Eberechi Eze, who looked set to be through on goal early in the second half.
Liverpool’s high line was incredibly high, so he had to remain vigilant and he did so with ease for large parts.
Virgil van Dijk – 5
Often reliable, he would have been gutted to have given away the Palace penalty on Sarr.
He looked uncomfortable being dragged onto his left side, with Sarr repeatedly taking him on each time he had a run at him.
Milos Kerkez – ( Andy Robertson, 84) 6
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Struggled early in the second half, which meant Gakpo had to drop deep to help.
Defensively, he was decent, even if it wasn’t spectacular.
Dominik Szoboszlai – 6
A strange game for the powerful midfielder.
It felt like there was more he could do, but he was still largely comfortable to have had a decent game, apart from a few misplaced passes that almost caught his defence out.
Curtis Jones – (Wataru Endo, 71) 5
A quiet game for Jones, who was replaced in the 71st minute.
Mohamed Salah – 5
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Liverpool’s talisman had a quiet game by his own standards.
Not that he was bad, as he looked to play in his teammates most often, but it was strange to see Liverpool needing a goal and Salah not threatening as he usually does plus he missed a vital penalty kick.
Florian Wirtz – (Harvey Elliott, 84) – 6
A delicate pass to Ekitike for the first Liverpool goal.
Throughout his time on the pitch, he showed glimpses of how technically adept he is, changing pace or leaving his man for dead with a simple shift of his body.
Cody Gakpo – 6
He was deployed on the left side of the attack and did a solid job balancing his attacking duties with helping out Kerkez.
Hugo Ekitike – (Alexis Mac Allister,71) – 7
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What a brilliant finish to silence the vociferous Palace fans early on.
He showed his quality by dropping his shoulder, picking his spot, and finishing with precision into the far corner.
Huge boost for him and the team.
