An emotional comeback against Milan. Say what you want about Arne Slott, but at least he knows his story. The first two minutes of this game marked perhaps the first real turning point of Liverpool's new era. An early goal from Christian Pulisic gave Milan a 1-0 lead, following Saturday's defeat to Nottingham Forest. So, how are your nerves?
It was, in the end, pretty solid: aided by some messy defending from Milan, Liverpool methodically beat the seven-time champions at home over the next 88 minutes, not always fluently, not always calmly, but with a reassuring directness and, above all, instinctive composure.
Liverpool were happy with the ball. They were happy not to have the ball. They didn't dwell on missed chances, they just created more of them. And of course it helps when your opponent has the structural integrity of Puri, and free-flowing headers from set-pieces from Ibrahima Konate and Virgil van Dijk put Liverpool ahead.
Dominik Szoboszlai scored a goal in the second half, answering Slott's plea for more goal contributions from midfield, but perhaps the most notable performances were those of Cody Gakpo on the left wing and Ryan Gravenberch in midfield. Gakpo was an absolute menace – unpredictable in his movements, unstoppable on the ball and slicing Milan to shreds with his forward thrusts.
Meanwhile, Gravenberch was at the heart of Liverpool's comeback and continued his fine start to the season, collecting the ball deep, winning it back high and producing some excellent early passing to help the home side take the lead.
Even then, Milan's early goal felt extraordinary, almost surreal, in its ease and lack of intensity, as Alvaro Morata took the goal kick with his first touch, turned it into a corner and passed it to Pulisic, who also took his first touch. And, of course, Pulisic still had a lot to work on at this point. But, as Liverpool will reflect when they look back on this goal, perhaps not enough. Kostas Tsimikas was nowhere to be found, Konate couldn't get close enough, and Pulisic was able to run towards goal and sink the ball into the bottom corner.
And perhaps against a better team such a collective mistake would be enough to lose the game. But Liverpool always had the cushion, and Milan simply weren't strong enough or disciplined enough to deal with such situations. “A team that doesn't work as a team” was the great Arrigo Sacchi's harsh criticism of a disjointed and weak side under new manager Paulo Fonseca, who managed just one win from their first four Serie A games. So once the initial euphoria had worn off, Liverpool simply had to settle for picking and timing their passes.
Konate recovered with a header to level the score in the 23rd minute, Trent Alexander-Arnold scored from a free kick from the left wing, Mike Maignan missed it and Konate enjoyed a free run, while Mohamed Salah hit the bar twice, Diogo Jota smashed the ball wide from a position that looked certain to score and Maignan made good saves from Salah and Kody Gakpo, who had made his own playmaker down the left wing after taking advantage of an early warning from Davide Calabria.
Here, in the wide pastures of San Siro, the space that had been so elusive against Nottingham Forest was now in abundance, particularly from the corner that led to Van Dijk's goal just before half-time. That, too, was rudimentary in both concept and execution, as he briefly grappled with his Netherlands team-mate Tijani Lijnders before suddenly staggering the other way and heading in Tsimikas' corner from four yards.
The infuriating thing about all this is that when Milan are at their full potential, they are a truly spectacular team. They are flawed and dangerous, made up mostly of young players, seasoned veterans and players who vaguely remember playing at Chelsea. Morata, who joined from Atletico Madrid in the summer, is a smarter and tougher striker than many give him credit for, while Ruben Loftus-Cheek, at 28, is essentially the same player he was at 20, Fikayo Tomori is probably the first choice for a shaky backline and Tammy Abraham made a cameo as a second-half substitute.
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By then the game was over. There were times when it looked as though Milan might hold on, keep pushing and make things a bit tougher for Liverpool. But an injury to Maignan, who dived bravely at Jota's feet, meant Milan lost their standout player, and soon afterwards teenage newcomer Lorenzo Torriani picked the ball out of the net after a counter-attack from Gakpo and a fine finish from Szoboszlai.
The game finished quietly, Federico Chiesa made a fleeting debut and Salah went into “must score” frenzy mode.
That may not be a bad thing, as goal difference is likely to be a key factor in a 36-team league, but the result, 3-1, was a pretty good reminder of their own ease.
