Liverpool vs Athletic Bilbao results: Cody Garkepo scores hat trick, new players make a stunning debut at Anfield

Liverpool won a dramatic victory against Athletic Bilbao 3-2 in the preseason at Anfield Stadium, which was held on WIB on Tuesday, August 5th local time. Dutch striker Kody Garkepo became the main star, scoring two winning goals and a ridiculous own goal.

This game is the second consecutive game. In the first game, Liverpool sent more young players and won 4-1. The two matches also ended Liverpool's preparations for the 2025/2026 season as they will play the Community Shield against Crystal Palace on Sunday (August 10) at 9pm (WIB).

This friendly match also witnessed the wonderful appearance of some new players from Liverpool in front of fans. Mohamed Salah also contributed a goal, but unfortunately he missed the penalty before the game ended.

coach Arn Slott sent a very strong team and directly sent five new players to start. New striker Hugo Ekitic gave an assist in the first half, showing his real contribution.

This victory undoubtedly became Liverpool's very active capital before the arrival of the new season. So, what is the course of this game full of drama and unique moments?

The outstanding appearance of the new transfer player

Liverpool manager Anne Slott is not ambiguous in the important warm-up match against Athletic Bilbao. He sent five new players to start from the first minute of the game to test the team's strength.

Big guys like Florian Werz, Hugo Ekitic, Milos Cox, Jeremy Flynnon and goalkeeper George Mamaldashvili made their debut in front of Anfield Stadium. They showed very promising performances from the beginning of the game.

Hugo Ekitic has the most outstanding performance among new players, providing assists for Liverpool's first goal. His excellent acceleration on the wing successfully gave Mohamed Salah a chance to score.

In addition to the starter, Will Wright, a 17-year-old young player who has transferred, has also performed quite promising. He came on as a substitute and even left his name almost on the scoreboard. The drama stage is called Cody Garkebo

. This game seems to have become the main stage of Dutch striker Cody Garkebo. He directly participated in three goals in 15 minutes of chaos and drama.

Cody Garkepo successfully brought Liverpool back to a 2-1 lead early in the second half. However, not long after, he foolishly made an own goal, and the ball hit his face and bounced into his goal.

Six minutes after that strange moment, Cody Garkepo succeeded in making the mistake perfectly. He scored again, regaining the lead for Liverpool and also became the key to the team's victory.

In this dramatic game, it ended with a penalty that Mohamed Salah failed to score in the last few minutes. Fortunately for Liverpool, his shot flying high from the crossbar did not affect the final result of the game.

The first appearance of the novice

This match against Athletic Bilbao became a stage for Liverpool's new players to show themselves. New striker Hugo Ekitic performed very well and directly contributed an assist.

Another star player, Florian Werz, also demonstrated his strength through actions that plague the opponent's defense very much. When he was replaced, Anfield fans even gave warm applause.

This special moment was also felt by the young genius Will Wright, who was only 17 years old. The player who just joined from Salford City successfully made his debut and even nearly scored a goal.

The very positive performance of these new players has become a very valuable capital. Now, Arne Slot and his team will focus on the community shield game against Crystal Palace.

Player lineup

Liverpool: Mamadashvili; Fripman, Endo, Konath, Elkesey; Shoboslai, Gravenbech; Salah, Werz, Gakpo; Ekitic.

Substitutes: Pages, Chiesa, Nalo, Morrison, Davidson, Wright