Barcola bags hat-trick as Liverpool wins big
Bradley Barcola opened his Liverpool account with a hat-trick, though Andoni Iraola's team was found wanting at the back in an entertaining 6-3 Champions League victory.
Barcola had made a slow start to his Liverpool career after his big-money move from Paris Saint-Germain, but the two-time European champion put those troubles behind him at Raiffeisen Arena.
His hat-trick goal put Liverpool 5-1 up midway through the second half, with Lewis Koumas then nudging the visitors into an even more commanding position, though some dismal Reds defending allowed LASK a glimmer of hope heading into the latter stages.
Ronald Araujo put Liverpool ahead in the 22nd minute, heading home from Kostas Tsimikas's in-swinging corner.
Liverpool doubled its advantage within 96 seconds, as Koumas wriggled free and teed up Barcola, who confidently swept into the left-hand corner.
Liverpool's stand-in captain Tsimikas did brilliantly to pick out Koumas soon after, but the youngster's neat finish was disallowed for offside, before Ryan Gravenberch's low shot bounced out off the post.
But there was no denying Barcola in the 37th minute, with the Frenchman coolly slotting in his second Liverpool goal after latching onto Florian Wirtz's incisive pass.
Liverpool had its fourth as Jeremie Frimpong headed in from Tsimikas's centre six minutes into the second half.
Iraola switched his centre-backs on the hour, with Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez coming on. Within moments, Yvan Dibango found Robert Ljubicic, who drilled in.
Yet Liverpool swiftly restored their four-goal cushion as Barcola slammed into a gaping net after meeting Frimpong's cross.
Barcola went close with a cheeky lob as he hunted down a fourth, but the Reds did not have to wait long to score again, with Koumas tucking Frimpong's cross between the legs of Lukas Jungwirth.
Dibango grabbed his second assist as he lobbed in for Florian Flecker to head into an open goal, with Van Dijk and Gomez again caught out.
Liverpool's defence was found wanting once more in the 77th minute. Dibango put another brilliant ball into the box, and Flecker hammered in, though there was to be no famous comeback for the Austrian champions.
Bradley Jean-Manuel Essolisam Addo Barcola
Liverpool FC
