Liverpool v Villarreal

FULL TIME4 – 3

Tue, 20 Oct 2026 19:00:00 UTCAnfieldMatchday 3

Post-game report— full article

Liverpool complete 4-3 comeback against Villarreal to maintain perfect Champions League start

Andoni Iraola's heavily rotated side recovered from a two-goal deficit at Anfield to secure their third consecutive European victory. Alexis Mac Allister scored twice as Liverpool overcame a disastrous opening half-hour to move level with Paris Saint-Germain at the top of the table.

6 cited sources · Oct 21 · Read the article →

Pre-match win probability — Pulse estimate

Liverpool 44%Draw 20%Villarreal 36%

Pulse model at kickoff, scaled by each side's scoring rate in this competition's own table. An estimate, not a betting market.

Match stats

LiverpoolVillarreal

53Possession47

2.41Expected goals (xG)1.59

22Shots14

7Shots on target5

8Shots off target2

7Blocked shots7

14Shots inside box9

8Shots outside box5

7Corners2

2Offsides4

12Fouls10

0Yellow cards2

0Red cards0

2Saves4

541Passes498

464Accurate passes415

Match events

4′Georges Mikautadze
27′Alberto Moleiro
29′Sergi Cardona (assist Nathan Saliba)
36′Alexis Mac Allister (assist Kostas Tsimikas)
41′Santiago Mouriño
45′Ronald Araújo (assist Rio Ngumoha)
45′Ronald Araújo → Florian Wirtz
45′Nathan Saliba ← Tani Oluwaseyi
54′Alberto Moleiro ← Juan Marcos Foyth
60′Tajon Buchanan ← Alex Freeman
60′Georges Mikautadze ← Ayoze Pérez
65′Alexis Mac Allister (assist Rio Ngumoha)
66′Lewis Koumas → Alexander Isak
68′Florian Wirtz (assist Cody Gakpo)
74′Rio Ngumoha → Bradley Barcola
74′Jérémy Jacquet → Joe Gomez
78′Santi Comesaña ← Gerard Moreno
81′Trey Nyoni → James McConnell
87′Tani Oluwaseyi (assist Ayoze Pérez)

Liverpool · Villarreal

Starting XI · as it played — Ratings are a Pulse estimate

Liverpool4-3-3

46.8Dijk

16.3Becker

187.5Gakpo

108.8Allister

386.8Gravenberch

217.5Tsimikas

337.8↓45'Araújo

676.8↓66'Koumas

56.8↓74'Jacquet

426.8↓81'Nyoni

738.3↓74'Ngumoha

Villarreal4-4-2

255.7Gulacsi

176.3↓60'Buchanan

186.3Gueye

146.3↓78'Comesaña

126.3Veiga

247.1↓45'Saliba

237.3Cardona

106.0↓54'Moleiro

156.0Mouriño

97.3↓60'Mikautadze

66.3Navarro

Lineups — ratings are a Pulse estimate

Liverpool

4Virgil van Dijk6.8
1Alisson Becker6.3
18Cody Gakpo7.5
10Alexis Mac Allister8.8
38Ryan Gravenberch6.8
21Kostas Tsimikas7.5
33Ronald Araújo7.8
67Lewis Koumas6.8
5Jérémy Jacquet6.8
42Trey Nyoni6.8
73Rio Ngumoha8.3

Villarreal

25Peter Gulacsi5.7
17Tajon Buchanan6.3
18Pape Gueye6.3
14Santi Comesaña6.3
12Renato Veiga6.3
24Nathan Saliba7.1
23Sergi Cardona7.3
10Alberto Moleiro6.0
15Santiago Mouriño6.0
9Georges Mikautadze7.3
6Pau Navarro6.3

LiverpoolTale of the tapeVillarreal

4-3-3Formation4-4-2

3 ptsTable0 pts

+1Goal difference-1

WWLLWFormWLLLL

44%Win chance36%

Head to head

First meeting

Liverpool and Villarreal have not met in the seasons we hold. Seasons searched: 2025-2026, 2026-2027.

Recent form — Last five, before this fixture

Liverpool

WWLLW

@LASK6-3
vsAtlético Madrid2-1
vsParis SG0-2
@Paris SG0-2
vsGalatasaray4-0

Villarreal

WLLLL

vsNapoli3-1
@Borussia Dortmund2-3
@Bayer Leverkusen0-3
vsAjax1-2
vsFC Copenhagen2-3

Where they stand — In a 36-team table

Team	P	W	D	L	GD	Pts
Liverpool	1	1	0	0	+1	3
Villarreal	1	0	0	1	-1	0