Champions League 2025/26: Szoboszlai scores late winner as Liverpool beat Inter Milan 1-0

Liverpool shook off the absence of Mohamed Salah as midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai scored an 88th-minute penalty to earn a 1-0 win over Inter Milan in the Champions League on Tuesday, boosting hopes of a top-eight finish.

With Salah’s recent feud with head coach Arne Slot still fresh, Liverpool needed a positive result but Inter made life difficult for the Reds until a late lapse in concentration cost the Serie A side dearly.

As the match headed for a draw, Alessandro Bastoni pulled on Florian Wirtz’s shirt, and the German’s theatrical tumble in the penalty area alerted VAR, who told the referee to take another look.

Szoboszlai stepped up and hit the ball past goalkeeper Yann Sommer, causing his team to rise to eighth place in the table with twelve points after six of the eight group matches.

With the top eight qualifying directly for the last sixteen, Inter are fifth, also with twelve points, but with a superior goal difference.

Curtis Jones gave the visiting side a promising start when he tested Inter’ keeper Sommer with an early shot, but the Merseysiders soon found themselves bogged down as Inter’s disciplined defense offered them few chances.

Liverpool thought they had taken the lead just after the half-hour mark through Ibrahima Konate’s close-range header, but a lengthy VAR review showed that the goal had been disallowed shortly before for a Hugo Ekitike handball.

Inter headed into halftime having already made two substitutions, as both Hakan Calhanoglu and Francesco Acerbi had to leave due to injury, but they more than held their own in the second half until the late penalty.

IMMEDIATE IMPACT

Conor Bradley and Wirtz replaced Joe Gomez and Alexander Isak in the 68th minute, and the two made an immediate impact, with Bradley going close with a shot from a tight angle and Wirtz playing his part in winning the penalty.

There seemed little danger when defender Bastoni cleared a chip towards Wirtz, but he had grabbed a handful of the Liverpool substitute’s shirt and pulled it back, and after another VAR review the referee pointed to the spot to give the Reds a chance they so desperately needed.

«Huge result. We knew we were coming into a tough spot, with a team at a good time. We had to show fight and commit. The clean sheet was crucial, and then we went and scored the goal,» said Liverpool defender Andy Robertson.

Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk said his side had handled the match well. “It could have been a 0-0 game in the end,” he added. “But for us it ended on a positive note.”

There was disappointment for Inter, who started with four straight wins but have now lost two in a row.

“It is difficult to lose this match, the positive side is that if we play like this we win most of the matches,” said defender Manuel Akanji.

Published on December 10, 2025