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Alexis Mac Allister signed off the international break in style before Liverpool’s players report back to Merseyside ahead of the Premier League’s return this weekend.
The midfielder was the last of Arne Slot’s squad in action during the October break as he started for Argentina in a friendly against Puerto Rico in Florida - and he even managed to outshine Lionel Messi.
Mac Allister scored twice as he played the full 90 minutes in a comprehensive 6-0 win for the world champions, giving him the perfect preparation for his return to Merseyside over the next couple of days ahead of Sunday’s game against Manchester United.
The 26-year-old capped off what was an encouraging end to the international break for some of Liverpool’s stars.
Dominik Szoboszlai was Hungary’s hero as he rescued a 2-2 draw against Portugal, striking in stoppage time to keep his country’s slim hopes of finishing top of their group alive and leaving Cristiano Ronaldo frustrated in the process.
Szoboszlai and Mac Allister weren’t the only Liverpool stars in the goals, with Cody Gakpo and Virgil van Dijk having both been on target for the Netherlands in a 4-0 win over Finland on Sunday.
It’s been a good week for Gakpo, who also scored twice against Malta to keep his streak going, having also scored against Chelsea before the break, although Slot was given a scare after Ryan Gravenberch came off at half-time for the Dutch on Sunday.
The international break wasn’t too kind for some of Liverpool’s other players though. Giorgi Mamardashvili would no doubt like to forget the past week quickly, having been on the end of a 4-1 defeat for Georgia in Turkey on Tuesday after also losing 2-0 against Spain at the weekend.
Meanwhile, Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz both continued to struggle, although the pair did experience contrasting fortunes with their countries.
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Isak drew another blank as Sweden suffered a 1-0 defeat to Kosovo on Monday, with manager Jon Dahl Tomasson fired after the game after picking up just one point from four qualifiers, leaving their World Cup hopes hanging by a thread.
Wirtz’s Germany fared better as it boosted its hopes of reaching next year’s tournament with a 1-0 win over Northern Ireland. It proved to be another underwhelming night for Liverpool’s summer signing though, leaving more questions about his form at the start of the season.
He’ll hope to find his feet quickly as he heads back to Merseyside, with the Reds preparing for their return to Premier League action against United on Sunday as they hope to move back ahead of Arsenal in the title race.
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