Liverpool Football Club delivered an expected win over Southampton with Alexander Isak scoring his first goal for Liverpool since joining the club from Newcastle United but teammate Hugo Ekitike’s dismissal from the game stole the headlines.
The Reds beat Southampton 2-1 at Anfield to advance to the next round of the Carabao Cup and Isak scored the game’s first goal just three minutes before the end of the first half. Isak got to celebrate his debut Liverpool goal a few minutes before he was replaced by Ekitike during half time.
Like Isak, Ekitike made his presence count by scoring the winning goal in the 85th minute but got sent off a minute later after picking up his second yellow card for taking off his jersey to celebrate the goal.
In what former striker Chris Sutton described as an act of “sheer stupidity“, Ekitike was shown a red card and will miss Liverpool’s tricky league tie against Crystal Palace on Saturday, September 27 and Isak described Ekitike’s dismissal as unfortunate.
Alexander Isak of Liverpool scores his team’s first goal during the Carabao Cup Third Round match between Liverpool and Southampton at Anfield on September 23, 2025 in Liverpool, England. (Photo by Liverpool FC/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
“I am sure he [Ekitike] just wasn’t aware of being on a yellow in that moment. Sometimes when you score a goal you are in that moment. Of course it is unfortunate” Isak said per ITV Sport and talked about his debut goal saying,
“Amazing. It was good to get back out there and score my first goal here and get the win as well. A good night.”
