Liverpool power into Europa League last 16, Brighton and West Ham reach knockouts
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
Liverpool striker Cody Gakpo scoring their fourth goal during the Europa League match against LASK at Anfield.
PHOTO: AFP
Follow topic:
LONDON – Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is going all out to win the Europa League after Cody Gakpo’s double fired the Reds into the last 16 with a 4-0 rout of LASK at Anfield on Nov 30, while Brighton and Hove Albion and West Ham United advanced to the knockout round.
Klopp’s side sealed top spot in Group E thanks to Gakpo’s brace and goals from Luis Diaz and Mohamed Salah.
Second-placed Toulouse’s 0-0 draw against Union Saint-Gilloise means Klopp can rest players for his team’s last fixture against the latter.
The eight group winners go through to the last 16 automatically, while the runners-up play a two-legged knockout round play-off in February against a team who finish third in a Champions League group.
“The most important thing is that we’re at the head of the group and that won’t change, so that’s good,” Klopp said.
“When we play the competition, it’s the most important competition on the planet. Easy as that. We want to go as far as somehow possible (in the Europa League).
“But now we play Premier League on Sunday (against Fulham) and so that is then the most important competition.”
Diaz netted his first goal at Anfield since August as he headed past LASK goalkeeper Tobias Lawal in the 12th minute to open the scoring. Three minutes later, he picked out Salah, who teed-up Gakpo to net from close-range.
Salah killed off the Austrian side in the 51st minute, stroking home a penalty for his 13th goal this season. Gakpo then capped off the demolition with a fierce strike in stoppage time.
Unlike Liverpool’s rich history in continental competition, Brighton are competing in Europe for the first time and the Seagulls’ adventure will continue thanks to Joao Pedro’s winner in Greece as they beat AEK Athens 1-0.
Roberto de Zerbi’s side are second in Group B, one point behind Marseille, following the French side’s dramatic 4-3 win over 10-man Ajax Amsterdam.
“Who knows how far we can go?” Brighton captain Lewis Dunk said. “We want to win it and you’ve got to dream big to achieve it.”
West Ham also moved into the knockout round after Tomas Soucek’s late goal saw off Backa Topola 1-0 in Serbia.
Second-placed Freiburg thrashed Olympiakos 5-0 to join Group A leaders West Ham in the knockout round.
In the Europa Conference League, 46 people were arrested as pre-match crowd trouble which resulted in injuries to four police officers marred Aston Villa’s 2-1 home win against Legia Warsaw.
The Polish fans were subsequently kept out of Villa Park after the violence, which saw flares and missiles were hurled.
The win assured Group E leaders Villa a place in the knockout round. AFP
