Alexis Mac Allister defined the phrase ‘taking one for the team’ during Liverpool’s 1-0 win over RB Leipzig on Wednesday night.
The Argentine midfielder was restored to the starting line-up by Arne Slot, with Sunday’s match-winning hero Curtis Jones dropping to the bench, and the 25-year-old repaid his coach’s faith with a strong performance in Germany.
The former Brighton man was walking a disciplinary tightrope for most of the match after being harshly booked in the 11th minute for an apparent dive when replays showed that he’d actually been caught by Willi Orban.
Mac Allister puts his body on the line
That didn’t stop Mac Allister from throwing himself into physical duels and challenges, though, and one particular moment during the win summed up his commitment to the cause.
Just as Benjamin Henrichs let fly with a powerful shot, Liverpool’s number 10 threw himself in front of it and took a ball into the groin in an impromptu remake of Hans Moleman’s ‘Man Getting Hit By Football’ short in The Simpsons.
It unsurprisingly took the wind out of the 25-year-old momentarily, but he quickly got to his feet and carried on as if it had never happened.
Mac Allister was an unsung hero last night
We’ve become accustomed to witnessing technical brilliance from Mac Allister in a Liverpool shirt, but last night’s match was one where the more unglamorous side to the game was on full show from the 25-year-old.
As per Sofascore, he won three duels and made two tackles, two clearances and one block against RB Leipzig, while the Liverpool Echo‘s Paul Gorst awarded him a 7/10 in his player ratings and wrote that the Argentine ‘kept things ticking over in midfield and was responsible for some important defensive work’.
He was unlucky not to score with a rocket of a shot which cannoned off the crossbar for what would’ve been his second goal of the Champions League campaign, and one that his overall performance would’ve merited.
South American colleague Darwin Nunez took much of the post-match acclaim for his winner, but Mac Allister was an unsung hero of the Reds’ latest European success, and he has the wounds to show for it too!