'Not smiling now': Jamie Carragher hits back at Marcos Llorente after Atletico midfielder names his dog 'Anfield'
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Liverpool were hit with a severe case of deja vu on Wednesday evening as Marcos Llorente scored a double for Atletico Madrid at Anfield.
Llorente was the villain when the two sides met in the Champions League at the same stadium five years ago, scoring twice to knock the Reds out at the last-16 stage.
With this year’s meeting coming much earlier in the competition, there was nothing like as much riding on the Spaniard’s two goals.
Nevertheless, Llorente still celebrated with gusto, savouring another big Champions League moment at a stadium which has come to mean a lot to him.
After Atletico knocked Liverpool out in 2020, Llorente reportedly bought a dog and named it ‘Anfield,’ after the ground which saw arguably the best individual moment of his career.
But having seen Virgil van Dijk render his brace meaningless, Jamie Carragher has suggested a new name for Llorente’s pooch.
Photo by OLI SCARFF/AFP via Getty Images
If Llorente’s celebrations felt over the top five years ago, they were more than a little performatory on Wednesday.
The 30-year-old celebrated on the pitch with substitutes after equalising, despite there being 10 minutes left to play.
Van Dijk duly punished him.
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And according to Carragher, Llorente should now buy a new dog and name it after the Liverpool captain.
“Interesting stat on Marcos Llorente,” presenter Kate Abdo said on CBS Sports Golazo.
“Seven Champions League goals, four of them have been at Anfield.
Anfield.”
“Did he,” answered Carragher as an image of a smiling Llorente and his dog flashed up.
“Not smiling now though is he.”
“He’ll have to buy another one,” commented Thierry Henry.
“Yeah, and call him Virgil,” Carragher interjected, to laughter from Henry, Abdo and Micah Richards.
While Llorente’s insistence on scoring at Anfield is a bizarre little quirk, it will warm Liverpool hearts that his efforts ultimately meant nothing at all.
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Nevertheless, the Spain international was clearly proud of his team’s efforts to escape from Merseyside with a point.
“We left it all at Anfield.
More together than ever,” Llorente wrote on Instagram after the game.
Although Liverpool saw off the midfielder and his team this time, it is likely that Atletico will still advance through to the knockout stages.
If they meet the Reds again, Arne Slot may have to devise a plan to stop Llorente.