SLOT’S WOES DEEPEN AS DUTCH SIDE HUMILIATE REDS IN SHOCK 1-4 CHAMPIONS LEAGUE THRASHING
BY OUR FOOTBALL CORRESPONDENT
ANFIELD, LIVERPOOL — The revered turf of Anfield, a stadium synonymous with European glory, turned into a scene of utter humiliation last night as Liverpool were dismantled 1-4 by a rampant PSV Eindhoven in a shock Champions League encounter.
The famous home of the Reds, often referred to as a fortress, was breached not just once, but four times by a clinical Dutch side, piling monumental pressure on manager Arne Slot.
The result marks a new low for the club, with PSV becoming only the second team ever to score four goals at the hallowed ground in a Champions League match, a statistic that will send shivers down the spine of the Anfield faithful. The very sight of their beloved stadium, the backdrop to so many historic nights, playing host to such a calamitous defeat has left the Kop stunned and furious.
From the outset, the atmosphere at Anfield was electric, but it was PSV who silenced the famous crowd just six minutes in. Virgil van Dijk, the Reds’ captain, committed a bizarre handball in the box, allowing Ivan Perišić to convert the resulting penalty and set the stage for a night of Dutch dominance.
Dominik Szoboszlai briefly restored hope, scoring to make it 1-1, which brought the crowd roaring back to life. But that energy was short-lived.
The second half saw Liverpool’s shaky defence completely collapse under the lights of their own ground.
Guus Til restored PSV’s lead in the 56th minute after a slick counter-attack, but the floodgates truly opened with the introduction of substitute Couhaib Driouech.
The youngster capitalised on a rebound from a Ricardo Pepi shot in the 74th minute to make it 3-1, and then hammered home a fourth in stoppage time, drilling a shot past the keeper in a truly agonizing finale for the Anfield faithful.
The final whistle was met not with cheers or applause, but with a chorus of angry jeers and boos aimed squarely at the team and the beleaguered manager.
The very foundations of Anfield, a place where opponents traditionally tremble, seemed to shake with the sound of pure dissatisfaction.
”It was far too easy for PSV, especially here at Anfield,” said a disgusted former player on commentary. “This stadium is meant to inspire fear, not gifts. To concede four goals on your own patch in Europe is a total disgrace.”
For Slot, the sight of the match-day banner proclaiming “This is Anfield” now stands as a stark reminder of the heavy expectation and crushing reality of his team’s form. The defeat deepens Liverpool’s crisis, turning their legendary home into a theatre of nightmares.
