9 hours ago
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Galatasaray has savagely taunted Liverpool after the Turkish team's stunning 1-0 triumph in the Champions League.
Arne Slot's men suffered consecutive defeats following Victor Osimhen's decisive penalty. The Nigerian striker's spot-kick within 20 minutes proved sufficient for Galatasaray, as the Reds squandered their opportunities and couldn't capitalize on their dominance.
Dominik Szoboszlai was dubiously penalized in the area after his trailing limb struck Baris Yilmaz in the face following the 25-year-old's cut back onto his right foot. VAR remained silent on the incident, which occurred merely 23 seconds after Hugo Ekitike and Cody Gakpo spurned their opportunity when the Frenchman was played through one-on-one with the Galatasaray goalkeeper.
Liverpool wasted its openings and earned a penalty themselves, yet French official Clement Turpin reversed his verdict after VAR intervened.
Galatasaray's victory marked its maiden home Champions League success in seven years, making amends for the team's 5-1 hammering by Eintracht Frankfurt, Liverpool's upcoming opponents in the tournament.
To mark the memorable victory, the Turkish club's English X account twisted the knife for the Reds and their faithful.
"You'll never walk alone, but sometimes you walk out without points," the post declared, accompanied by an image of Milos Kerkez crouched in despair.
In the lead-up to Tuesday's clash in Istanbul, the Galatasaray faithful went to extraordinary lengths to unsettle the Reds ahead of their encounter. During the early hours of the morning, supporters orchestrated a fireworks spectacle outside what they claimed was the team's hotel.
Following the setback, Dutchman Slot told Amazon Prime Sports that his team had once again been outmanoeuvred by gamesmanship tactics.
He remarked: "Again, disappointed. For me, this was a different performance on and off the ball [than Crystal Palace]. First half we played quite well and had a big chance to go 1-0 up.
"It is difficult to compare this situation to before. We are sometimes a bit outsmarted in situations like this, and I cannot blame Dominik Szoboszlai for the situation. They make a 20 percent penalty a 100 percent penalty, which is very smart from them.
"We are not so far [off the level shown last season]. This is sometimes what the schedule can bring - Galatasaray is not a simple game. We now play Chelsea away, a difficult game.
"The margins are small, and they were last season. For the second time in a row, we are on the wrong side.
"I saw a lot of things in the first half, but the second half was much less. I don't think in the second half there was a lot of playing time. Their striker was on the floor four or five times. It was difficult to get momentum in the game."
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