Liverpool head coach Arne Slot has blamed Xabi Alonso for Bayer Leverkusen's crushing defeat at Anfield on Tuesday night in UEFA Champions League.

After a goalless first 45 minutes, the Reds came into the second half firing on all cylinders, putting four goals past the Bundesliga title holders.

Colombian international Luis Diaz scored a hat-trick, with Dutchman Cody Gakpo adding another to wrap up a comprehensive win for the Reds.

In his post-match reaction, Arne Slot hinted that Xabi Alonso was an architect of his own downfall by changing the setup of his team, including shifting Victor Boniface to the left side of the attack.

“Like many times now, managers change their game plan when they come to Anfield or when they play us,” he said at the post-match conference, as quoted by ANS.

“That's also what we saw today. I and my staff see quite a lot when we go into a game like this. We've seen a lot of games from Leverkusen.

“I have never seen Boniface playing from the left, so they played without a nine. And that's why they overloaded the midfield a lot, it was quite difficult to press them high, but the good thing is that we hardly conceded anything.”

Liverpool are currently sitting comfortably at the top of the UCL table with 12 points, as the only team to win all their four matches.