Romeo Lavia was sent off in the 78th minute, and the traveling Anfield supporters were sure to give the Belgian plenty of stick. Liverpool lost 3-1 to Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea, despite their best efforts to play like champions after entering the Stamford Bridge turf with a Guard of Honor.
Enzo Fernandez’s well-executed goal within three minutes of Chelsea’s instinctive pizzazz in the final third was the reward, but the thousands of people who traveled down south were too busy celebrating their victory to care.
Ten minutes into the second half, a defensive blunder in the box gave the west Londoners a hilarious double lead. Before Cole Palmer scored from the penalty spot past Alisson Becker, Virgil van Dijk gave the team a response.
Regardless of the result, the traveling Liverpool fans had a great afternoon in the capital, which was summed up by their taunts of Lavia, a player they had been linked to before he was traded to west London in the summer of 2023, after he was replaced.
Liverpool fans can’t resist Romeo Lavia taunt
The Stamford Bridge team won the game, but Chelsea’s Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia both gave Liverpool a guard of honor following the Reds’ victory in the Premier League last weekend.
Chelsea won the three points in West London thanks to goals from Cole Palmer, Jarell Quansah’s own goal, and Enzo Fernandez. Enzo Maresca’s team advanced significantly in their quest for Champions League positions. It didn’t really matter to Arne Slot, though, as this was a chance to switch up the starting lineup and rest some of the less-used players.
However, Caicedo and Lavia didn’t have a good time. When Lavia was replaced in the second half, the Liverpool away end, which was, predictably, in good spirits throughout the match, took advantage of the opportunity to message Lavia (though it could have applied just as readily to the Ecuadorian too).
The Liverpool supporters chanted, “You could have won the league!” as Lavia, who had to leave on the far side of the field and then circle the perimeter, passed them. The Belgian grinned and accepted the situation amicably.
