The young striker’s euphoric shirt-off celebration after a late winner turned to despair as a second yellow card left his manager furious and facing a suspension for a crucial Premier League match.
Arne Slot did not hold back in his criticism of Hugo Ekitike after the forward’s emotional celebration saw him sent off in Liverpool’s dramatic EFL Cup victory over Southampton on Tuesday night.
The match seemed destined for extra time until the 85th minute, when Ekitike tapped in from close range after a brilliant run and assist from Federico Chiesa. Overcome with joy at scoring what looked to be the winning goal, Ekitike ripped off his shirt in celebration—forgetting he had already received a yellow card earlier in the half. The inevitable second booking from referee
Thomas Bramall resulted in a red card, marring the victory and ruling him out of Saturday’s league match against Crystal Palace.
In a brutally honest post-match interview, Liverpool boss Slot labelled the act “stupid.”
“Maybe I’m a bit old-fashioned,” Slot told Sky Sports. “But if I had to score a goal like his, I would have turned around and walked up to Federico Chiesa and said, ‘It’s all about you. A great assist, great run, and I didn’t have to do a lot.’ But that’s maybe me being old school. It was stupid, not smart, in every sense.”
Slot expressed relief that his team held on for the win but was clear about the consequences. “The good thing is that his teammates helped him because we could get the win over the line, but… it’s far from ideal.”
The manager also addressed Ekitike’s first yellow card, given for protesting a decision, calling it “needless” and a failure to control emotions.
Ekitike quickly apologized on social media after the final whistle, writing, “I was so excited to help the team… The emotion got the better of me tonight. My apologies to all the Red family.”
Within the Liverpool dressing room, frustration was mixed with sympathy. Teammate Alexander Isak, who scored his first goal for the club, gave Ekitike the benefit of the doubt: “I am sure he just wasn’t aware of being on a yellow in that moment. Sometimes, when you score a goal, you are in that zone.”
However, defender Andy Robertson was more blunt, pointing out the self-inflicted nature of the problem. “I’ll be very surprised if he does it again,” Robertson said. “The first one was stupidity, for kicking the ball away, and now we miss him for Saturday. It’s silly on his part, but he’s only young and he’ll learn from it.”
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