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Steve McManaman was left amazed by the save made by Allan McGregor during the second-half of Rangers’ Champions League tie, telling (broadcast on 4/10; 21:16) that the Ibrox hero’s stop from Diogo Jota was the best of the lot.
It proved to be another tough night for Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side in Europe. The Gers were under pressure for most of the evening at Anfield. And ultimately, they suffered their third loss of the competition.
Liverpool were largely comfortable. But the margin of victory would have been so, so much greater were it not for the performance of McGregor in the Rangers goal.
He could do nothing about either of the goals he conceded. Trent Alexander-Arnold beat him with an incredible free-kick early on, while Mo Salah was able to double the lead from the penalty spot.
McGregor was an absolute thorn in the side of Darwin Nunez during the first-half, making several smart stops. But it was Jota who forced the 40-year-old to produce his moment of sheer brilliance.
The Portuguese could not have hit his 58th minute shot any sweeter. And he must have thought that the attempt was going to end up flying into the roof of the net. However, McGregor somehow managed to tip the ball over the bar, proving his reactions are almost as fast as ever.
And McManaman could not hide how impressed he had been with the Rangers star after the save.
“Jota gets hold of this. That’s a great stop. What a save that is. That’s the best by a country mile and he’s had a lot, McGregor,” .
You can understand why van Bronckhorst was keen to move on from McGregor in the summer. Jon McLaughlin had generally been a good performer for the Gers when he had received a chance. And McGregor is clearly in the twilight of his career.
But their respective performances this season highlight that McGregor is still the best goalkeeper in the squad. Certainly, very few goalkeepers are better when it comes to producing a masterclass in shot-stopping on the big stage.