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Former Liverpool defender Jarell Quansah scored just six minutes into his Bundesliga debut for Bayer Leverkusen, before paying a touching tribute to former teammate Diogo Jota.
Quansah found the back of the net against Hoffenheim at the Bay Arena. In celebration, he did the PlayStation pose that Jota made famous. The Portuguese striker and his brother, Andre Silva, were tragically lost in a car crash earlier this summer.
Bayer Leverkusen, now managed by the former Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag, fell to a 1-2 defeat in the end. Fisnik Asllani and Tim Lemperle were also on the scoresheet.
With Bayern Munich hammering RB Leipzig by six goals to nil on Friday, the race for the Bundesliga title could be almost over already. Vincent Kompany's side has already established itself as being very much in the driving seat.
Luis Diaz impressed for Bayern Munich with Leipzig struggling. The latter could soon sell Xavi Simons to Chelsea, which would then increase the likelihood of it firming up interest in the Liverpool attacking midfielder Harvey Elliott.
Leverkusen, who won the league the year before last, has been ripped apart this summer. While Quansah was a good signing, Florian Wirtz and Jeremie Frimpong moved to Liverpool, and Xabi Alonso left to join Real Madrid.
Eintracht Frankfurt, who beat Werder Bremen by four goals to one, could be one option to challenge Bayern Munich this season.
It has lost Omar Marmoush and then Hugo Ekitike in successive transfer windows, however. It must also contend with playing Champions League soccer this season.
Meanwhile, there is not too much faith in Borussia Dortmund to kick on. It faces St Pauli later today but has only signed Jobe Bellingham and Daniel Svensson this summer, having finished 25 points off the pace last time around.
"He has already made an impressive impact in a Liverpool defense dominated by world-class players," Leverkusen sporting director Simon Rolfes said when Quansah's transfer was confirmed.
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"With Jarell, our defense gains significant dynamism, pace, and toughness in tackling. He's another very important building block for the future."
Liverpool has since signed Giovanni Leoni from Parma for a fee of around $35 million (£26 million). It also holds an interest in Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehi, who is out of contract in 2026 as things stand.
Liverpool.com says: Quansah will do well with Leverkusen but he has joined at a tricky time. For all that it has been very good in recent seasons, the entire team has been ripped apart since then. It could be a long campaign under Ten Hag.
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