Slotting it in: It’s never too late for the Reds

When four minutes of additional time was announced, Anfield roared. They knew.

- Dhiman Sarkar

"When there is time, there is hope," said the commentator on television. He knew too.

All night Robin Le Normand had tried to prevent Virgil van Dijk from getting to the end of cornerkicks. Till 1.40 minutes into second-half stoppage time on Wednesday, the Atletico Madrid and Spain central defender had mostly managed to do that. And then he couldn't. When Van Dijk jumped and met Dominik Szoboszlai's inswinging delivery with a nod, it continued the trend of Liverpool winning through late goals.

The only team in Premier League history to have won four consecutive matches with goals in the final 10 minutes have carried the habit to Europe. On the day Liverpool head coach Arne Slot turned 47. And in a match where Liverpool scored two goals in six minutes, their fastest ever in the Champions League. Diego Simeone's Atletico Madrid do not go down easy and they showed that again through Marcos Llorente's goals late in each half. At 3-2, Llorente had found Alexander Sørloth with a lovely ball but the resultant header was too close to Alisson.