Luis Diaz hat-trick sees Leverkusen boss Xabi Alonso lose on Liverpool return

Luis Diaz scored Liverpool’s first Champions League hat-trick at Anfield in seven years as they extended their 100 per-cent record to four matches with a 4-0 victory over Bayer Leverkusen as former midfielder Xabi Alonso endured a miserable return.

Diaz’s impudent chip was followed by Cody Gakpo’s fourth goal in a week as the hosts won the game within the space of three second-half minutes before Diaz added two more late on.

Liverpool’s first eight goals in the competition all came from different scorers – Diaz the first man to net more than once – and shows the options and versatility head coach Arne Slot has at his disposal as on this occasion he opted to play the Colombia international as a centre-forward to accommodate Gakpo on the left.

Last season it took Diaz until February to score the nine goals he has now, while Gakpo’s six in this campaign is equally as impressive as he is by no means a regular starter.

They are resources Alonso, who was hot favourite for the Liverpool job when Jurgen Klopp announced he was leaving before ruling himself out to concentrate on guiding his club to their first Bundesliga title, could only dream of as his side struggled to make an impression.

The Spaniard stood in his technical area for most of the game, conducting things like he had done for five years in a red shirt at this ground