Prior to the five-goal rampage at the Estadio do Dragao, Jurgen Klopp’s side was just two goals short of Paris Saint-Germain’s 25 goals – the best tally recorded in the group stages of the competition. The Parisians themselves have since been demoted to second place with regards to the total number of goals scored in this season’s UCL after getting only a consolation goal in their 3-1 defeat to Real Madrid at the Bernabeu.
Liverpool’s quest to becoming the highest scoring side started at home to Sevilla back in September 2017. A game that pointed to a Merseyside victory considering Firmino and Salah responded to Ben Yedder’s fifth-minute strike, ended in a draw - thanks to Correa’s 72nd-minute strike. The disappointment was rehashed two weeks later in the Reds’ trip to Spartak Moscow with a Coutinho strike only canceling Fernando’s stunner.
The real party began in Maribor, where a scintillating performance saw Liverpool obliterating the host via a 7:0 scoreline. Again, the usual suspects, Firmino and Salah, saw their performances being rewarded with a brace apiece in what was Maribor’s worst Champions League defeat in history. With the winless run of seven group matches abruptly ending, Liverpool enjoyed another win when Maribor visited Anfield by scoring three unanswered goals.
However, they failed to build on the new trend by drawing away to Sevilla, again. Three-all was how the game ended but more could have come from Klopp’s men who led with three goals at half-time. Perhaps, infuriated by the recurrent will to give up winning positions, the Reds brigade knocked Spartak Moscow off their perch by blasting seven goals past them to end the group-stages with aplomb.
The absence of the ever-reliable Coutinho is slowly becoming a long-distant memory considering how Firmino, Salah, and Mane have stepped up to own the stage in recent weeks. Wednesday night’s performance by the trio against FC Porto only highlights that the Brazilian has already become a distant memory to the Kop. As things stand, Liverpool sits atop the top scoring team chart with 28 goals, with PSG and Real Madrid following suit with 26 and 20 goals. Manchester City and Juventus complete the top five with 18 and 17 goals, respectively.
