Mohamed Salah netted his historic 50th European goal for Liverpool as the Reds secured a 2-1 victory over Lille at Anfield on Tuesday night.
The win made Liverpool the first team to book their place in the Champions League last 16 under the new Swiss model format.
Salah’s 34th-minute strike was followed by a Jonathan David equaliser for the 10-man visitors, before Harvey Elliott’s deflected effort sealed the victory for Arne Slot’s side.
The result maintained Liverpool’s perfect record in this season’s competition, cementing their position at the top of the 36-team standings with an unassailable lead.
Mohamed Salah helped Liverpool to victory over Lille on Tuesday night
Reuters
The victory also marked Liverpool’s seventh consecutive Champions League win, equalling their best sequence in the competition’s modern era.
Curtis Jones provided the crucial assist for Liverpool’s opener, threading a brilliant through ball that allowed Salah to race clear and finish past Lucas Chevalier.
The hosts looked to be in complete control when Lille’s Aissa Mandi was shown a second yellow card on the hour mark for a foul on Luis Diaz.
However, just three minutes after going down to ten men, the French side found a surprise equaliser through Jonathan David.
The Canadian striker pounced after Hakon Haraldsson’s initial effort was blocked, blasting home from close range in front of the travelling supporters.
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The setback proved only temporary for Liverpool, as substitute Harvey Elliott restored their lead five minutes later with a speculative effort that took a massive deflection off Ngal Ayel Mukau.
Liverpool’s qualification for the knockout stages comes with the luxury of having their final group game against PSV Eindhoven reduced to a dead rubber.
Manager Arne Slot now has the option to rest key players in that fixture, with top spot already secured.
The victory was particularly impressive given Lille’s strong European form this season, with the French side having previously earned results against Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and Juventus.
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Mohamed Salah and Harvey Elliott’s goals led Liverpool to victory over Lille
Reuters
The win also saw Liverpool set a new club record for the longest time without conceding a goal in Europe, surpassing the previous mark of 576 minutes established by Rafael Benitez’s team in 2005-06.
That streak was finally ended by David’s equaliser, though it proved insufficient to deny Liverpool their historic achievement.
Liverpool dominated the key statistics, enjoying 55 per cent possession compared to Lille’s 45 per cent.
The home side registered 10 shots to Lille’s three, with four of those efforts finding the target against just one for the visitors.
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Arne Slot’s Liverpool are in the midst of an incredible season
Reuters
The corner count was similarly in Liverpool’s favour at 2-1, while the foul count showed Liverpool committing 10 infractions to Lille’s six.
Both teams will now turn their attention to domestic matters, with Liverpool hosting Ipswich Town in the Premier League on Saturday.
Lille, whose club-record 21-game unbeaten run came to an end at Anfield, travel to face Strasbourg in Ligue 1 at the weekend.
The French side will conclude their Champions League league phase campaign with a home fixture against Feyenoord.