The Paul Gorst verdict from the Gtech Community Stadium after Liverpool come from behind to win 2-1 against a Brentford team that finished with nine men

t's been a good week to be a £100m+ Liverpool footballer. After a Bradley Barcola hat-trick and two assists for Florian Wirtz, Alexander Isak secured successive away-day victories as Andoni Iraola's men came through a tough examination at Brentford with a 2-1 win.

After the 3-0 demolition against Manchester City last week, sparked by Ryan Gravenberch's sending-off, few teams needed a refresher course on just how a red card can change Premier League games.

But they got another demonstration here after John Brooks' decision to dismiss Yehor Yarmoliuk for a headbutt on Jeremy Jacquet proved to be the catalyst that turned it all Liverpool's way.

OPINION

Brooks later sent off off Vitaly Janelt as Keith Andrews' battling side ended the game with nine men and plenty of pride but, crucially, no points.

The points instead headed back to Merseyside, leaving Iraola to reflect on how having game-changing players in your squad can sometimes be enough to change games. But while it's been an encouraging week for Barcola, Wirtz and Isak, attributing this victory solely to three players who cost a jaw-dropping £364m would be somewhat inaccurate.

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The Reds largely struggled to make in-roads when it was 11 versus 11 and, like City last week, they were simply in possession of enough quality to make their numerical advantage count when it really mattered.

After being told he was largely struggling with confidence since his move Paris Saint-Germain, Barcola could be accused of being overconfident with his finish in the first half as he went clean through against Caoimhin Kelleher for what should have been a fourth goal of the week.

Instead, the France international, inexplicably, opted to chip it and the result was a tame effort that went wide and was greeted by the home fans suggesting the £123m man was "waste of money".

Barcola arrived with a consistent critique that his finishing tends to let him down and at that price point, that does not exactly bode well. There should be very few weak points of anyone who costs that kind of king's ransom, not least the most important aspect of being a top forward.

Isak, a player who cost a fraction more than Barcola at £125m, cannot be accused of poor finishing but he was anonymous in the first half.

It was tempting to double check the footwear of former Liverpool defender Sepp van den Berg, who could have breezed through the opening 45 minutes in his slippers, given the No.9's subdued performance after a few weeks out with a thigh issue.

Brentford took the lead through Keane Lewis-Potter's superb header from Igor Thiago's cross but the visitors were given a lifeline when Yarmoliuk foolishly leaned his head towards Jacquet, who was left in a heap as a result.

It gave referee Brooks a decision to make and after he had previously overturned a Reds penalty, following a check that showed a vital touch from Dango Ouattara’s tackle, the official once more changed his mind after video consultation and reached for the red card to give Yarmoliuk his marching orders. The entire complexion of the fixture changed on that call, and in fairness, Brooks had no choice.

Jeremie Frimpong, introduced to inject more thrust at right-back, lasted just six minutes before being withdrawn with what is suspected to be a muscle issue.

Having already seen the returning Dominik Szoboszlai's afternoon cut short with what is thought to be a recurrence of his own hamstring problem, it's another worry for Iraola, who is seeing his numbers diminish just as the fixture list is piling up.

Full credit to Liverpool's head coach, however, because the decision to overlook Joe Gomez and instead move Victor Munoz to right-back and bring on Rio Ngumoha was as inspired as it was bold.

Iraola's bravery was rewarded when Wirtz fed a marauding Munoz, who had acres of space to dart into down the flank. The Spaniard's smart chop inside opened up the space for him to guide a left-footed finish past Kelleher and level the game.

And credit where it is also due for Wirtz, whose perfectly weighted pass brought his 11th assist for the club since his £116m move from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer of 2025.

Only Rayan Cherki (16) has more open-play assists during that time for Premier League clubs. Wirtz has faced scrutiny in recent weeks, much of it fair, but it's been a positive few days for him. He has to build on this now.

Liverpool camping on the edge of the Brentford box was a regular sight after the equaliser and Isak's winner was a mark of pure class. The Sweden international had been a relative passenger but came alive at the perfect time, taking a touch to control Barcola's knock-down before firing home with his left foot.

It was a wonderful finish from a player whose goals will be absolutely integral to anything Iraola achieves at Anfield. That's five now for the campaign and double figures will be the next milestone for him.

"It was about concentration," Isak said after the game. "I didn't have too many chances and was waiting for my moment. I just tried to get control of the ball and finish as quickly as possible. Luckily it went in. You've got to be ready for when your chance pops up."

Janelt's red card only infuriated the home crowd further in stoppage time and Barcola continued to make a meal of promising breaks that should have put the game to bed, but Liverpool did enough.

After hard-fought wins against Bournemouth and Brentford away from home, Iraola, slowly, is starting to rebuild this Reds side's character. It may take some time to bring it all together but things appear to at least be moving in the right direction.