“That wasn’t football” – Hugo Ekitike had one major gripe despite yet more goalscoring heroics | OneFootball

Hugo Ekitike had one complaint to get off his chest despite maintaining his excellent goalscoring form for Liverpool on Saturday evening.

Having scored four goals across his previous two Premier League games, the Frenchman was on the scoresheet yet again tonight with a looping header in the 66th minute against Tottenham Hotspur, which ultimately proved to be the winner for Arne Slot’s side.

The champions had to withstand a frenzied finish after Richarlison halved the deficit late on, with flashpoints plenty and two red cards for the home team (a nasty challenge by Xavi Simons on Virgil van Dijk, and a petulant kick by Cristian Romero on Ibrahima Konate).

Ekitike: “That wasn’t football”

As he reflected on a third consecutive victory for Liverpool, Ekitike – whose neck was grabbed by Richarlison while he was face-down on the ground – seemed taken aback by the brutality of the contest in north London, which he likened to a proverbial ‘war’ at times.

The 23-year-old told Sky Sports after the game: “It was very physical today. There were a lot of duels, but sometimes, it was bad. That wasn’t football. It was a bit too much, but that’s part of football. It was a great war and we won.”

(Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)

Liverpool prevail after a night of niggly brutality in north London

To say that referee John Brooks was kept busy at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium would be an understatement.

Even though the referee awarded just 16 free kicks across the night, he brandished no fewer than eight yellow cards in addition to the two reds he showed to Simons and Romero. One of those bookings has triggered a suspension for Dominik Szoboszlai against Wolves next weekend.

A match which was often lacking in quality (especially in the first half) was rife with niggly fouls and altercations, and Ekitike isn’t wrong in bemoaning how it unfolded as a spectacle, even if the result went Liverpool’s way.

The win has come at a cost, though, with the aforementioned ban for the Hungarian midfielder and the injury to Alexander Isak in scoring the Reds’ opener as he was caught by a lunge from Micky van de Ven, while Conor Bradley and Florian Wirtz also appeared to be in discomfort prior to their substitutions.

There wasn’t much in the way of Christmas spirit in that particular area of north London tonight, but thankfully LFC have an early present to enjoy as they venture back to Merseyside.