Barcola hat-trick fires Liverpool to 6-3 Champions League win in Linz
Bradley Barcola scored a hat-trick as Liverpool beat LASK 6-3 in Linz in the Champions League on 14 October 2026. The treble was Barcola's first and came in the 238th appearance of his career; it was only the fifth away hat-trick by a Liverpool player in the European Cup/Champions League.
On the eve of the match, manager Andoni Iraola faced questions over the progress of Florian Wirtz and Barcola after slow starts to their campaigns given their transfer fees of £116m for Wirtz and £123m for Barcola, but he defended both players and said he trusted them "100%". Iraola stressed the emphasis was on the collective rather than individual statistics and after the game said: "I'm really happy for Bradley. You were asking me yesterday about him not making the numbers and [the same with] Florian and I think both of them today played really, really well. I think they made a difference."
Liverpool dominated the first half, racing into a three-goal lead and registering 19 shots by half-time, the most on record since 2003-04 by any team in the first half of a Champions League away match. The side's first-half control left them in a commanding position despite conceding three goals after the hour mark.
Barcola converted two fine finishes — one with his right foot and one with his left — and completed the treble with a tap-in after the break, securing the match ball. The performance ended a run of poor results following a 3-0 defeat by Manchester City on Sunday and provided a personal landmark for the 24-year-old.
Florian Wirtz produced a "fine display" in Linz and provided an assist, while Jeremie Frimpong scored and registered two assists and Kostas Tsimikas added two assists. Ronald Araujo scored his first goal for the club since joining in the summer, and Lewis Koumas got on the scoresheet in the second half after having two goals ruled out for offside; his first-half assist for Barcola made him the youngest Liverpool player to both score and assist in a Champions League match at 21y 25d, with the previous youngest being Steven Gerrard (21y 139d v Dynamo Kyiv in 2001).
LASK arrived at the game winless in their last four matches and were criticised for periods of passivity by pundit Stephen Warnock on 5 Live. "What do you take from that? It's very difficult because the game was very passive for large periods," Warnock said. "There were parts where I am watching Trey Nyoni in midfield and he has literally got no pressure on him at all, he is picking passes off. Barcola has got the run of his full-back who was taken off at half-time, which tells you everything. I don't read too much into it, because I expected Liverpool to go there and win, and win comfortably." Warnock added: "Can Barcola do that again, away at Brentford, because that is what they have essentially bought him for, to play in big games away from home. He hasn't played that much football this season so [this game] was about getting minutes in his legs and getting him fit and getting him sharper. The acid test will be Brentford away."
Barcola and Liverpool now prepare to return to Premier League action with a trip to Brentford on Saturday; Brentford sit fourth in the table and remain unbeaten in the league.
