UCL: Mario Lemina's header gives Galatasaray edge over Liverpool

ISTANBUL: Mario Lemina scored an early header as Galatasaray secured a narrow 1-0 victory over Liverpool in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League last-16 tie on Tuesday, leaving the contest finely poised ahead of the return leg at Anfield.

The Turkish champions made a perfect start when Lemina struck in the seventh minute. A corner was headed back across the goal by Victor Osimhen, allowing Lemina to dive forward and nod the ball into the net to hand the hosts an early advantage.

Lemina, who was later named Player of the Match, praised his teammates and supporters after the win.

“I am grateful to my teammates and all our fans. We wanted to win by fighting hard, and we did,” he said.

The result mirrored the sides’ meeting in the league phase in September, when Galatasaray also triumphed 1-0 thanks to an Osimhen penalty.

Liverpool manager Arne Slot, taking charge of the club for the 100th time, described the result as “bad déjà vu” but insisted his side had created enough chances to score.

"It's bad deja vu, you could say. The score is the same as the match three months ago. But we played a game where we could have scored much more," Slot said.

Both teams saw goals disallowed during an entertaining contest. Osimhen thought he had doubled Galatasaray’s lead shortly after the hour mark, only for the effort to be ruled out for offside in the build-up.

Liverpool also had the ball in the net in the 70th minute, but a VAR review showed it had struck Ibrahima Konate’s hand before crossing the line.

Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk remained confident despite the defeat, saying the second leg at Anfield next week would provide a crucial advantage for the English side.