Welcoming Lille at Anfield in the second leg of the Champions League group stage in the early morning of January 22 (Vietnam time), Liverpool only need 1 point to secure a direct ticket to the round of 16.
Both sides started cautiously, only having 1 shot in the first 30 minutes. In the 34th minute, Mohamed Salah handled the situation coldly from a counter-attack to open the scoring for Liverpool. After taking the lead, The Kop played more excitedly, almost doubling the gap at the end of the first half with Salah's dangerous header.
The pressure increased as Lille were reduced to playing with only 10 men after Mandi received a second yellow card in the 59th minute. However, it was quite surprising that despite being short, the away team found an equalizer in the 67th minute. From a precise cross from his teammate, David turned around and finished technically in the penalty area, defeating goalkeeper Alisson.
However, that joy did not last long as luck helped Liverpool regain the lead. Ngal'Ayel Mukau's clearance came to Elliott and he caught a beautiful volley from nearly 20m away.
The 2-1 victory took Arne Slot and his team to the round of 16 with the top spot in the group. They have won all 7 matches, conceding only 2 goals. For their part, Lille is in 11th place, but with the same score as the team in 8th place. They still have a chance to get a direct ticket if they beat Feyenoord in the final match.
