Liverpool’s Sadio Mane and Virgil van Dijk exhibited pure class as the Reds thrashed Bayern Munich 3-1 at their own backyard to progress to the quarter-final of the UEFA Champions League.
The teams played out a 0-0 draw at Anfield last month and the Bavarians were expected to come out all guns blazing at their home turf.
They did start the game well but a resilient Liverpool defence did extremely well to keep the initial waves of pressure at bay.
As the game progressed Liverpool slowly started to get back into the game but both the teams seemed to lack ideas and creativity in the final third.
But it was Liverpool who looked better and better with every passing second and started to control the game.
And they were the ones who struck first as Sadio Mane displayed unearthly technique and skill to put his side in the lead.
The Senegalese international latched on to a searching long ball from Virgil Van Dijk and brought it under control with a heavenly touch.
He still had a lot to do to get the ball into the back of the net and he did so with utmost calmness.
With a perfect turn, the Senegalese beat both Manuel Neuer and Rafinha before chipping it into the far corner.
Not only the chip was on target but it also had the perfect weight to leave Bayern defenders Niklas Sule and Mats Hummels mere spectators.
Have a look at this moment of brilliance courtesy of BT Sport here –
Mane was again on the target on the 84th minute when he headed a brilliant lobbed ball from Salah home to wrap up a memorable night for the five-time European Champions.
With Liverpool’s qualification, it is for the first time in the last ten years when four British clubs have managed to qualify for the quarter-finals stage and if they keep on performing like this, the glorious days of English football may not be far away.