A strong second half propelled Liverpool to a 3-2 comeback victory over visiting AC Milan on Matchday 1 of the 2021-22 UEFA Champions League group stage on Wednesday.
It was a back-and-forth affair at Anfield as memories of the two European finals in 2005 and 2007 set the tone for the match, and the teams obliged with an entertaining, if at times frantic, contest.
Jordan Henderson and Mohamed Salah were on target for the Reds with a Milan own goal thrown into the mix, while the Rossoneri got a pair of quick strikes late in the first half from Anté Rebic and Brahim Diaz to give the visitors a brief, but ultimately unsuccessful, lead.
The Reds got the scoring underway in the ninth minute as Trent Alexander-Arnold charged into the Milan area and fired a low shot toward goal. The ball caromed off sprawling defender Fikayo Tomori and over Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan, with Tomori (perhaps harshly) being credited with an own-goal in the process.
Liverpool should've doubled the lead just four minutes later after Ismaël Bennacer was judged to have handled the ball inside the 18-yard box, but Salah couldn't convert the ensuing spot-kick. The miss didn't bring Salah and the home side's spirits down as they continued to attack throughout the first half in search of an additional goal.
Unfortunately for the Reds, it was Milan that would next find the back of the net, firstly through a well-placed Rebic side-footer in the 42nd minute and then via a counterattack two minutes later that resulted in a tap-in for Diaz.
That left the hosts down a goal at halftime, but they got the ball into the Milan net twice within the opening three minutes of the second half. After the first one was called back for offside, Salah made up for his earlier penalty miss by poking the ball past Maignan following a nice one-two with Divock Origi that sent the Egyptian in alone on goal for the equalizer.
Now playing with their tails up, the Reds found the go-ahead goal in the 69th minute when Henderson latched on to a weak clearance by the Milan defence off an Alexander-Arnold corner kick and blasted a shot through several players and into the net.
It was all Liverpool needed, as Milan couldn't muster enough of an attack to pull level. The result puts the Premier League side on top of Group B after the first matchday, with Atletico Madrid and Porto splitting the points in a 0-0 draw, also played on Wednesday.