A touch of subtlety from Hugo Ekitike saw Milos Kerkez give Liverpool a lifeline at the end of a dreadful first half against Brentford.
The Reds suffered another setback in the opening 15 minutes of a Premier League match when Dango Ouattara struck early, and the home side doubled their lead just before first-half stoppage time when Kevin Schade took advantage of having an ocean of space to run into.
But just as Arne Slot prepared for his toughest team talk of the season, the Hungarian left-back halved the deficit five minutes into extra time, with the Bees furious as only three had initially been indicated.
Ekitike subtly contributes to Kerkez’s first Liverpool goal
Conor Bradley sent in a low cross from the right flank and although the ball rolled for Kerkez to finish from close range, Ekitike’s involvement is also worth mentioning.
When the cross was delivered, the Frenchman ran to the ball and attempted a backflick; and although he didn’t really make contact, he did manage to drag Sepp van den Berg with him and create space behind him for Liverpool’s number 6 to finish.
A goal that Kerkez will do the world good with
Brentford fans and coaching staff were furious with the referees over the length of stoppage time played, a situation the Reds found themselves in against Crystal Palace a month ago.
On that occasion, a late lapse of concentration beyond the 96 minute mark was fully punished by Eddie Nketiah, and the harsh truth is that in both cases the team that conceded was caught out by not playing until the whistle.
For Kerkez, that goal will hopefully do him some good after a difficult first half for the 21-year-old, whose defensive positioning earned him a few reprimands from Virgil van Dijk and whose attacking threat was minimal until he struck on the stroke of half-time, while he was also shown a yellow card for a foul on Ouattara.
Ekitike did not receive an assist for the Hungarian’s attack, but his clever play by dragging Van den Berg out of position will have been noticed and appreciated by Slot.
Hopefully Liverpool can now take advantage of that lifeline and get a positive result, something that seemed highly unlikely when Schade had doubled Brentford’s lead.
You can watch Kerkez’s first goal for LFC below, via @soccerontnt on X:
Milos Kerkez arrives at the back post to pull one back for Liverpool 👀
📺 @tntsports & @discoveryplusUK pic.twitter.com/zok1POy1au
— Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) October 25, 2025
#Video #Slot #enjoyed #Hugo #Ekitikes #involvement #Milos #Kerkezs #Liverpool #goal