Muriqi's Late Header Stuns Liverpool in Istanbul

Fenerbahçe produced one of the great nights in their recent European history on Wednesday, beating Liverpool 3-2 at the Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium in Istanbul in the UEFA Champions League. Substitute Vedat Muriqi headed the winner in the 79th minute, as the Turkish side twice came from behind to end Liverpool's perfect start to the league phase.

Liverpool had won their first three matches of the campaign, but they left Istanbul with a first defeat after surrendering the lead twice on a breathless evening. Each time the visitors went in front, Fenerbahçe answered within four minutes, and the final twist belonged to Muriqi, whose header settled a five-goal contest with eleven minutes still to play.

The opening goal arrived in the 25th minute and belonged to a youngster. Trey Nyoni, starting in midfield for Liverpool, met a defensive header with a low volley that deflected off Kojo Peprah Oppong and wrongfooted the Fenerbahçe goalkeeper Ederson. It was Nyoni's first senior goal, and for a few minutes it looked as though Liverpool's evening might follow a familiar script.

Fenerbahçe needed only four minutes to reply. Mason Greenwood stepped up to a free kick on the edge of the area and struck it towards goal, only for the ball to catch Jeremy Jacquet in the defensive wall and skid past Alisson. The deflection left Liverpool's goalkeeper with no chance, and the home crowd inside the Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium found its voice.

The second half turned on Liverpool's bench. Manager Andoni Iraola sent on Cody Gakpo, Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz in a triple change, and two of the substitutes combined to restore the lead in the 69th minute. Gakpo exchanged passes with Kostas Tsimikas, drove to the byline and delivered a cross that Isak met with a powerful close-range header, scoring with his first touch.

Again the advantage lasted four minutes. Following a short corner, N'Golo Kanté crossed from the right, Gakpo's glancing header diverted the ball away from Alisson, and Archie Brown arrived unmarked at the far post to tap into an unguarded net. Brown's goal made it 2-2 and swung the momentum back to the hosts.

Six minutes later the comeback was complete. Muriqi, who had replaced Romelu Lukaku in the 63rd minute, was the hero. Brown looped a cross into the area after a long throw had been headed back to him, and Muriqi, surrounded by three Liverpool defenders, rose to head past Alisson and into the bottom corner. It was his first goal in the UEFA Champions League, in his ninth appearance in the competition.

Set pieces told much of the story of the night. All three Fenerbahçe goals came from dead-ball situations: a deflected free kick, a short corner and a long throw. Liverpool, for all their quality in open play, were undone three times by deliveries into their penalty area, and each time they had only just regained the lead. The pattern will worry Iraola, whose side have now conceded ten goals in four Champions League matches this season.

Liverpool pushed for an equaliser in the closing minutes, with half-chances falling to Gakpo and Isak, but Fenerbahçe held firm. The defeat was Liverpool's first in this season's competition, and it ended the sense of control that three straight wins had built. Even so, the visitors still hold nine points from four games, and their campaign remains firmly on course.

For Fenerbahçe, the night meant far more than three points. Interim coach Dirk Kuyt, a former Liverpool player, masterminded the victory over his old club, and his side climbed to 19th in the 36-team table on five points. It was Fenerbahçe's first victory of this Champions League campaign, and their first win in the competition since 2008.

The result also reshaped the middle of the league-phase table. Liverpool remain well placed on nine points, but they now know that no lead in this competition is safe, while Fenerbahçe, written off after a winless start, are suddenly back in the race for the knockout phase with four league-phase matches still to play. On this evidence, the visit to Istanbul will be a fixture no side in Europe takes lightly.

The photographs with this report are file images of Muriqi, Isak and the Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium, taken before the match rather than pictures from the night itself.