𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

This was always going to be a difficult game in which to come in from the cold, and in typical Liverpool fashion this season, Giorgi Mamardashvili was picking the first shot from the opposition out of the net when Lemina headed home from close range after Osimhen won an initial header from a corner.

There was little the Georgia international could have done, but with Liverpool’s defence struggling ahead of him, they needed him at his best to keep the away side in the game.

In the first half, he had to be alert to parry away a Noa Lang cross that missed everybody but was sneaking into the far corner. Minutes later, he produced an excellent diving save to deny an unmarked Davinson Sanchez from doubling Galatasaray’s lead.

There was less for the goalkeeper to do in the second half, but he continued to command his area and deal with whatever Galatasaray threw at him.

The hope is that Alisson’s absence will be short-term, and his omission precautionary, but Mamardashvili showed in this display that he can play an important role in the final months of the campaign — if he is needed.