Hugo Ekitike Fires Back After Arne Slot's Brutal 'Stupid' Attack
Liverpool forward Hugo Ekitiké quickly offered a humble apology after receiving his second yellow card against Southampton, an incident his manager Arne Slot furiously labeled as "foolish."
The enthusiastic French striker came on to replace Alexander Isak during the interval in Tuesday's Carabao Cup third round clash after Liverpool's marquee signing scored his debut goal for the club. Ekitiké earned his first booking just eight minutes after entering the pitch for petulantly throwing the ball following a free kick decision, but completely forgot about this caution thirty minutes later.
Southampton had drawn level through Shea Charles in the 76th minute before Federico Chiesa was released into the penalty area by an intelligent lofted pass from Andy Robertson. The Italian winger laid the ball across for Ekitiké to finish into an empty net before celebrating by pulling off his jersey.
Ekitiké immediately received his second yellow card and was dismissed from the field.
"The initial booking [for dissent] was completely unnecessary and, to some degree, foolish, as you must manage your emotions," Slot raged after the match.
"Regarding the second incident, I told him that if you find the net in a Champions League final in the 87th minute after beating three defenders and placing it in the top corner...I might possibly understand his reaction of: 'This moment belongs to me.' But I'm traditional. If I had scored such a goal, I would have approached Federico Chiesa and declared: 'This goal belongs to you, not to me.' Unnecessary, not intelligent, you might call it foolish, I immediately called it foolish as well."
Ekitiké quickly took to social media to attempt reconciliation. "It's always better to manage your emotions. If you cannot, do it in a manner that doesn't result in a yellow card," he posted on Instagram.
"I was incredibly thrilled tonight to assist the team in securing another win here at our stadium for my debut Carabao Cup appearance... The excitement overwhelmed me tonight. My apologies to the entire Red family.
"Gratitude to the supporters who consistently back us and to my teammates for clinching [sic] this victory!"
Hugo Ekitiké Delivers on Pre-Match Pledge to Southampton Manager
Ekitiké might have concluded the evening feeling embarrassed but was in cheerful mood before kickoff. The French striker was seen enjoying banter with Southampton manager Will Still, who worked as Reims assistant coach when Ekitiké was developing at his hometown club.
Still disclosed the conversation details which Ekitiké interpreted somewhat too literally. "Hugo amuses me," the Saints boss chuckled. "He's an entertaining character. We chatted before kickoff, and he promised he'd enter the game, find the net, then hand me his shirt and disappear, which is precisely what he accomplished.
"Credit to him. We transferred him to PSG for £50 million, so we recognized his talent and he had netted numerous goals for us too. He's a persistent danger, and he's exceptionally frustrating to face." As some of his Liverpool colleagues can confirm after a tense final five minutes on Tuesday, he can occasionally be frustrating to play alongside as well.