Liverpool 4-3 Villarreal: Ngumoha inspires stunning comeback as Reds survive late scare

Liverpool fought back from two goals down to beat Villarreal 4-3 in a dramatic Champions League encounter at Anfield, with teenager Rio Ngumoha inspiring the comeback.

Georges Mikautadze and Sergi Cardona stunned the hosts inside half an hour, but Alexis Mac Allister and Ronald Araújo struck before the interval to bring Liverpool level.

Mac Allister completed his brace and Florian Wirtz added a fourth after the break, before Tani Oluwaseyi’s late volley left Andoni Iraola’s side clinging on for their third win in three Champions League matches.

Villarreal made a flying start when Virgil van Dijk misjudged a header in the fourth minute, allowing Mikautadze to take control and steer a low shot past Alisson Becker.

The visitors looked sharper and more organised, repeatedly finding space behind a Liverpool defence that struggled to settle.

Those problems were exposed again in the 29th minute as William Saliba’s through ball beat the Reds’ offside trap and released Cardona, who calmly finished into the bottom corner for his first goal in European competition.

Liverpool had offered little in response until Cody Gakpo’s low delivery forced Renato Veiga to turn the ball behind, providing the corner from which the comeback began.

Kostas Tsimikas swung in the resulting set piece and Mac Allister rose to head home in the 36th minute, giving the home crowd renewed belief.

The equaliser arrived deep into first-half stoppage time when Villarreal failed to clear another corner and Ngumoha collected the loose ball on the left.

The winger created enough room to deliver a curling cross to the back post, where Araújo headed in unmarked to complete an unlikely first-half recovery.

Liverpool emerged with greater purpose after the interval, although Ngumoha, rather than the more established names around him, provided the decisive attacking spark.

In the 65th minute, the 18-year-old escaped Cardona on the right and drove to the byline before cutting the ball back for Mac Allister to finish first time off the crossbar.

It was Ngumoha’s second assist of the night, making him Liverpool’s youngest player to register a Champions League assist and underlining his influence on a chaotic contest.

Mac Allister’s double also brought a remarkable statistic into focus: all eight of his Champions League goals have come at Anfield, a competition record for a player whose goals have all been scored at one stadium.

Three minutes after taking the lead, Liverpool struck again as Tsimikas won possession and Gakpo advanced into the area before finding Wirtz, who finished through Veiga’s legs.

The goal offered another positive sign for the £100 million German, whose recent performances suggest he is beginning to find his rhythm in Iraola’s team.

Yet the hosts could not make their two-goal cushion comfortable, and their defensive frailties resurfaced in the 87th minute.

Ayoze Pérez reached the right byline and crossed for the unmarked Oluwaseyi, whose first-time volley cut Villarreal’s deficit to one and ensured a tense finish.

Liverpool held on, however, and Ngumoha was quick to share the credit after a performance that belied his age.

“Top team performance, without the team playing well I wouldn’t have played well,” he said.

The result makes it seven wins in Liverpool’s last nine matches, maintaining their momentum in Europe despite questions about their defensive reliability.

Next up is a home meeting with Brighton & Hove Albion, whose strong start to the season promises another demanding test for Iraola’s side.