Alexander Isak upstaged as he makes his Liverpool debut in the Champions League

LIVERPOOL, England (AP) — Alexander Isak was upstaged in his Liverpool debut by two of the club's greats.

The Sweden striker may be the most expensive player in the history of British soccer, but he got a close-up view of what it takes to become an Anfield icon as Liverpool beat Atletico Madrid 3-2 in the Champions League with another late winner.

Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk produced the moments of magic as the Merseyside club first raced into a two-goal lead and then sealed victory with more late drama.

Van Dijk rose to head home in the second minute of stoppage time after Atletico had staged an improbable fightback with two goals from Marcos Llorente.

Isak, a British record $170 million signing from Newcastle, had already left the field by then after getting his first action since that move. He'd already seen Andy Robertson and Salah score goals within six minutes of kick off. And from the sidelines he watched Van Dijk's headed goal — the fifth time in as many games this season that Liverpool has needed a late winner.

Salah performance underlined his enduring powers at the age of 33.

The Egypt international was Liverpool's standout player as the Merseyside club won a record equaling 20th English title last season — scoring 34 goals along the way. He ended months of uncertainty about his future by signing a contract extension in April, but Liverpool signaled its intention to plan for the long-term by spending more than $400 million combined on attacking talent in the form of Isak, Hugo Ekitike and Florian Wirtz.

Isak was the crowning piece, with Liverpool waiting until transfer deadline day to finally the get deal done for a player who established himself as one of the most sought after strikers in the world after scoring 32 goals for club and country last season.

Liverpool fans had to wait to get him and then wait to see him in action after he was left out of Sunday's 1-0 win against Burnley.

But he was in the starting lineup Wednesday and wearing the club's iconic No. 9 shirt.

Yet it was Salah who threatened to steal the show — as he so often has.

His drilled free kick from the edge of the box in the fourth minute clipped the heel of Andy Robertson just in front of goal and was diverted past Atletico goalkeeper Jan Oblak.

Two minutes later and Salah had his name on the scoresheet after showing strength and control to wriggle his way into a shooting position on the right of the box and slide a shot into the back of the net.

It was Salah's third goal in a five games for Liverpool already this season.

Salah might have scored a hat trick but hit the post in the second half.

Atletico looked like it might leave with a point after Llorente poked a shot past Alisson just before halftime and then struck a volley that deflected into the roof of the net in the 81st.

But the drama wasn't over yet and it was captain Van Dijk who made Anfield erupt in celebration by heading in Dominik Szoboszlai's corner.

James Robson is at https://twitter.com/jamesalanrobson

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Liverpool's Virgil van Dijk waves supporters at the end of the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Liverpool and Atletico Madrid at Anfield stadium in Liverpool, England, Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

Liverpool's Alexander Isak walks during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Liverpool and Atletico Madrid at Anfield stadium in Liverpool, England, Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

Liverpool's Mohamed Salah celebrates after scoring his side's second goal during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Liverpool and Atletico Madrid at Anfield stadium in Liverpool, England, Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

Liverpool's Virgil van Dijk celebrates after scoring his side's third goal during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Liverpool and Atletico Madrid at Anfield stadium in Liverpool, England, Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

Liverpool's Alexander Isak runs during the Champions League opening phase soccer match between Liverpool and Atletico Madrid at Anfield stadium in Liverpool, England, Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

Liverpool's Alexander Isak, left, and Wataru Endo during a training session at the AXA Training Centre, Liverpool, England, Tuesday Sept. 16, 2025. (Peter Byrne/PA via AP)

PITTSBURGH (AP) — All of the emotions were there, from joy to jitters and everything in between.

Well, almost everything.

The one thing Konnor Griffin didn't feel when the Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop — all 19 years and 344 days of him — ahead of his big league debut Friday against the Baltimore Orioles was shock.

“I'm ready for this,” Griffin said a few hours before stepping onto the field at PNC Park as a professional for the first time.

Certainly looks that way.

All of Griffin's considerable physical gifts were on display over 2 hours and 44 electric minutes in a 5-4 victory over the Orioles.

There was the tidy double play, Pittsburgh’s first of the season, he turned in the second inning. There was the rope he hit to the wall in center field in his first at-bat in a few minutes later, a 105 mph laser off the bat against Baltimore's Kyle Bradish that scored Ryan O'Hearn and sent a jolt through a sellout crowd.

There was blistering dash from second to home on a ensuing groundball to right field by teammate Jared Triolo. There was the confidence to successfully challenge a strike call in his third at-bat. Oh, and the composure to gather a chopper he briefly bobbled before firing to first for an out to end the eighth, too.

All part of what Griffin called “hands down one of the best days of my life,” and what everyone involved with the organization hopes is the start of a long successful run for a franchise that hasn't reached the postseason in over a decade.

“He’s a difference maker, it was very apparent today,” said Pirates ace and reigning NL Cy Young winner Paul Skenes, who knows a thing or two about entering the majors with outsized expectations.

Just 628 days after Pittsburgh selected him with the ninth pick in the 2024 amateur draft, the athletic and mustachioed 6-foot-3 Griffin found a No. 6 jersey hanging in his locker at PNC Park and his name penciled in the seventh spot in the lineup against the Orioles, making him the first teenage position player to reach the majors since Juan Soto did it with the Washington Nationals in 2018.

On the surface, it seems fast. Not for Griffin, who checked every box — and quickly — while sprinting through the Pirates' system. The final steps came over the last week when he hit .438 in a handful of games for Triple-A Indianapolis.

All of which made for a full-circle moment when Griffin became the youngest Pirate to get a hit in his first game since Hall of Fame second baseman Bill Mazeroski did it on July 7, 1956. The club honored Mazeroski, who died in February at 1989, by having “Maz” painted into the outfield grass behind second, not far from where Griffin — who was scouted and signed by Mazeroski's son Darren — went to work on a warm spring afternoon that had a decidedly early fall playoff-like vibe.

“Darren is the reason I’m here,” Griffin said. "He believed in me and took a chance on me. That’s pretty special right there and I’m going to cherish that a long time.”

Griffin's call-up came less than two weeks after he was one of the last cuts during spring training, where he mashed three homers but also hit just .171. Rather than sulk, he headed to Triple-A and made the adjustments necessary — trying to get back to treating his job like a game of Wiffle ball back home in Mississippi — to get a call that has long felt inevitable.

“He just went right down and hit his stride and was able to reset in a couple of days,” Kelly said. “Which again, for anybody, is really impressive, especially for a 19-year-old kid whose hopes and dreams were to make the big leagues.”

Those dreams became reality when Indianapolis manager Eric Patterson called Griffin to his hotel room early Thursday and told him he was heading to The Show.

The next 24 hours were a blur.

From the short drive from Columbus to Pittsburgh to the scramble for at least 40 friends and family members to make it to the ballpark that's tucked hard against the Allegheny River in time for Friday's first pitch.

Griffin is the latest in a string of high-profile arrivals in Pittsburgh, from Skenes to rookie right-hander Bubba Chandler to catcher Henry Davis.

The future that has been talked about since general manager Ben Cherington was hired in late 2019 is finally arriving. And perhaps it's telling of how far the club has come that Griffin is joining a roster that has undergone a significant upgrade in recent months with the additions of All-Star second baseman Brandon Lowe, All-Star first baseman/outfielder Ryan O'Hearn and veteran designated hitter Marcell Ozuna.

A year ago, fans chanted for owner Bob Nutting to sell the club during the home opener. Those calls have faded, replaced by something seemingly just as rare: optimism for a team that hasn't won a playoff series since the 1979 World Series.

“This team is loaded,” Griffin said. “I get to come in here and just be a piece of this puzzle.”

Perhaps a very big piece. For a very long time. The Pirates and Griffin have engaged in talks about a contract extension that would lock him up for most of the next decade.

Griffin demurred when asked about it Friday, though he made his intentions very clear.

“All I’m going to say is, I want to be a Pirate for a long time,” he said. "This is a special place and I’m thankful to be here.”

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/mlb

Pittsburgh Pirates' Ryan O'Hearn, left, dumps a cooler of ice on teammate Konnor Griffin (6) while Griffin is being interviewed following a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles in Pittsburgh, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Pittsburgh Pirates' Konnor Griffin celebrates after hitting an RBI double, his first Major League career hit and run, during the second inning of a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles in Pittsburgh, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Pittsburgh Pirates' Konnor Griffin (6) is introduced for his major league debut before a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles in Pittsburgh, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Pittsburgh Pirates' Konnor Griffin sprints for home to score a run during the second inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres in Pittsburgh, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Pittsburgh Pirates' Konnor Griffin hits an RBI double, his first Major League career hit and run, during the second inning of a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles in Pittsburgh, Friday, April 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Pittsburgh Pirates' Konnor Griffin, right, follows manager Don Kelly, center, and owner Bob Nutting into a meeting with reporters before making his Major League Baseball debut in the Pirates' home-opener against the Baltimore Orioles, Friday, April 3, 2026, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Pittsburgh Pirates' Konnor Griffin meets with reporters before making his Major League Baseball debut in the Pirates' home-opener against the Baltimore Orioles, Friday, April 3, 2026, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Pittsburgh Pirates' Konnor Griffin meets with reporters before making his Major League Baseball debut in the Pirates' home-opener against the Baltimore Orioles, Friday, April 3, 2026, in Pittsburgh. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)