September 24 – Liverpool booked their place in the Carabao Cup fourth round with a late goal in a 2-1 win over Southampton at Anfield on Tuesday night, but the evening ended on a sour note for €95 million signing Hugo Ekitike.
The French striker, who notched the winner from close range in the 85th minute largely thanks to teammate Federico Chiesa’s unselfishness, was sent off moments later for a second yellow card after removing his shirt and holding it aloft to the Kop.
The gesture will now cost the forward a suspension for Saturday’s Premier League clash with Crystal Palace, giving record signing Alexander Isak an unopposed run at the starting spot up front and an opportunity to dislodge the Frenchman as Arne Slot’s preferred striker.
“I was so excited to help the team achieve another victory here in our home for my first Carabao Cup match,” Ekitike wrote on social media afterwards. “The emotion got the better of me. My apologies to all the Red family. Thanks to the fans who always support us and to my team-mates for this victory!”
Liverpool manager Arne Slot was far less forgiving.
“It is not [stupid] because it was his second [yellow] – it’s stupid even if you haven’t had a yellow card yet,” he said. “Maybe I’m a bit old-fashioned but I did score a few goals – not at his level, but I did – and if I went past three players and put it in the top corner then maybe you can say: ‘This is all about me.’
“But if I scored a goal like he did tonight, I would turn to Chiesa and say: ‘It’s about you Federico – great assist, great run and I didn’t have to do a lot.’ Maybe that’s me being old-school. It was stupid, not smart in every sense. The good thing is that his team-mates helped him to get the win over the line, but the thing is he is now suspended for Saturday and that is far from ideal.”
Contact the writer of this story, Harry Ewing, at [email protected]