5 talking points as Liverpool denied late by VAR to give Toulouse historic win
Liverpool's winning start to their Europa League group campaign came to an abrupt end as they suffered a 3-2 defeat against Toulouse.
Jurgen Klopp's side controlled the opening stages and almost took the lead inside four minutes as Joe Gomez's flicked header crashed off the bar. Despite the Reds' bright start. it was Toulouse who scored the first goal through Aron Donnum's deflected strike.
The Liverpool boss made three half-time substitutions in attempt to turn the game on its head, but Toulouse doubled their advantage just before the hour mark. Thijs Dallinga slotted the ball home to put the Ligue 1 outfit firmly in the ascendancy.
Cristian Casseres put through his own net to hand Liverpool a lifeline, only for Frank Magri to restore Toulouse's two-goal lead three minutes later. Diogo Jota halved the deficit late on, but it proved too little too late for Liverpool to salvage anything from the game after Jarell Quansadh's last-gasp leveller was ruled out by VAR. Here are five talking points from Stadium TFC.
VAR controversy
Liverpool thought they had salvaged a point in the 97th minute when Quansah stabbed the ball home from inside the area. It was a neat finish from the centre-back, who turned on a sixpence before slotting beyond the Toulouse goalkeeper.
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However, the goal was ruled out following a lengthy VAR check. After going over to the pitchside monitor, referee Georgi Kabakov felt Alexis Mac Allister handled the ball in the build-up and a free kick to Toulouse was given, much to the frustration of Klopp.
Jarell Quansah thought he equalised for Liverpool (Getty Images)Ca lamitous Tsimikas mistake
With Andy Robertson out of action for the foreseeable future after undergoing shoulder surgery, Kostas Tsimikas has emerged as Liverpool's only fit recognised left-back. He had started three of the Reds' previous five matches and was handed another chance from the off against Toulouse.
However, Tsimikas struggled and made a costly mistake leading to Toulouse's opening goal. The Greece international was caught on the ball and Donnum pounced, driving towards the edge of the box before curling an effort into the back of the net, via a deflection from Quansah. Tsimikas was then hooked at half-time for Dominik Szoboszlai as Liverpool searched for a way back into the contest.
Kostas Tsimikas' mistake allowed Aron Donnum to go through and score (Getty Images)Diaz returns to XI
Luis Diaz returned to the Liverpool starting XI against Toulouse, just hours after news arrived that his father has been released from a 12-day kidnap ordeal. Luis Manuel Diaz had been missing since Saturday October 28 after being captured alongside his wife, Cilenis Marulanda, who was quickly rescued.
However, on Thursday afternoon, it was confirmed that Diaz's father was freed by his kidnappers. Diaz, who came off the bench to score the equaliser for Liverpool against Luton on Sunday, started on the left of a front three that included Cody Gakpo and Ben Doak.
Endo struggles
It has proved to be a difficult start to life at Liverpool for Waturo Endo and Thursday's trip to Toulouse wasn't any different. The Japan international played as the deepest in a three-man midfield but failed to have an impact throughout his time on the pitch.
Endo was arguably fortunate to have stayed on the pitch when he lunged in on Casseres. The 30-year-old, who had already been booked, escaped a second yellow card and and a sending off which would have left Liverpool even further in trouble. Klopp took control of the situation and decided to take him off at half-time, with Trent Alexander-Arnold coming on in his absence.
Wataru Endo struggled for Liverpool against Toulouse (Getty Images)Where it leaves both teams
Despite losing in France, Liverpool remain top of their Europa League group with nine points from their opening four matches. It's the Reds' first defeat in the competition this season, after beating LASK, Union Saint-Gilloise and Toulouse in their first three games. Due to the international break, Liverpool have a three-week wait before their next European outing - a home game against LASK.
Meanwhile, Toulouse have jumped up to second on seven points, with LASK bottom despite beating Union Saint-Gilloise 3-0 in the other game in the group.
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