Andy Robertson: Give me the Puskas Award now!

The Scotland captain benefited from a deflection off his body from a Mohamed Salah free-kick that beat Jan Oblak just four minutes in to Wednesday night’s Champions League clash at Anfield.

“The set-piece coach, for whatever reason, he said I was crucial to set-pieces today so I’ve taken it literally!” Robertson told TNT Sports post-match.

“I was just trying to get in the line of the ’keeper so he couldn’t really see. It’s a great finish, give me the Puskas Award now! [Laughs]

“Obviously I didn’t know much about it but it was a great start.”

The Reds powered into a two-goal lead in the league-phase clash just two minutes later as Salah exquisitely slotted home having held off three defenders inside the box.

However, the visitors halved that deficit on the stroke of half-time through Marcos Llorente and the same player received his share of luck late on when a volley hit Alexis Mac Allister and left Alisson Becker no chance.

But for the fifth game in succession, Arne Slot’s side produced a late salvo, this time through Virgil van Dijk as the No.4 met Dominik Szoboszlai’s 92nd-minute corner with a booming header in front of the Kop.

“We need to maybe get back to winning a bit simpler and a bit easier,” said Robertson. “The assistant manager turned to me when Virgil put it in and said he’s getting too old for it, so I can’t imagine what the fans are like.

“Obviously it’s a great thing to have, being able to keep going right to the end, but when you’re 2-0 up and you’ve played so well in the first half, it should have been a more comfortable night.”

The match saw Alexander Isak make his Liverpool debut following a deadline-day transfer from Newcastle United being completed.

The striker featured for almost an hour before being replaced by Hugo Ekitike, as the Reds’ summer recruits continue to integrate at the club.

Read more: Match report | Arne Slot reaction | Player of the Match winner

Robertson said: “I thought he was excellent. Obviously [he has] not really had a pre-season, not had a lot of games since last season. But I thought, especially the first half, he was excellent.

“[He] naturally got tired and then it’s amazing to have a player like Hugo to come on. Both of them have got such quality.

“We’ve got a lot of new players, they have to settle in; playing with a big club like this is not easy. They’ve all really done well. They are the future, they are the ones who are going to take this club forward.

“They have shown glimpses so far and I’m sure they’ll only get better.”

The visit of Atletico saw vice-captain Robertson named in Slot’s starting XI for the first time in 2025-26, having come on during the first half at Burnley in the preceding fixture.

Asked about his approach to professionalism as he now competes with Milos Kerkez for opportunities, he said: “It’s part and parcel of football. When you’re at a club like Liverpool you expect to be challenged every single season.

“Obviously this one has been a bit different in terms of we’ve probably brought in somebody that is going to start. So that was a bit different for me, obviously a bit of a difficult summer and then once I made my mind up, I committed to it.

“Obviously I’ve only got a year left; I love playing with this club, I love being out there with the lads. I can help the lads as well. Obviously getting the vice-captaincy this season has given me added responsibility as well. So, I’ve just kind of thrived on that.

“And once the games get going and there’s more games, I believe I’ll play enough football. I’m taking positives and looking forward to the season ahead.”

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