Tottenham were still one goal behind when Dominik Szoboszlai shot from well outside their penalty area. His stoppage-time finish at Anfield turned Liverpool’s 2–1 lead into a 3–1 League Cup win, adding a final goal to a night that wasn’t yet settled.
It was his 13th competitive Liverpool goal from outside the box since arriving in 2023. His value to Liverpool’s midfield isn’t confined to shooting, but those finishes have accumulated across five competitions. Six came in the Premier League, with the other seven divided between domestic cups and Europe.
“With Dom, everyone is thinking he might score,” Andoni Iraola said afterward. Liverpool’s head coach was describing the expectation before the shot, rather than simply admiring where it finished.
There isn’t one template for the 13. His first came off his left foot. Some required no settling touch, while others followed a change of direction. And the free kicks haven’t all taken the same route past the wall.
How Szoboszlai built his long-range collection
The first arrived just three minutes into Liverpool’s 3–0 home win over Aston Villa on September 3, 2023. A corner was cleared toward Szoboszlai, who met the ball with his left boot without controlling it. His first Liverpool goal came from reacting to a clearance, rather than lining up a free kick.
Leicester encountered his right foot on September 27, 2023. With the League Cup tie level at 1–1, Szoboszlai came off the bench and needed only five minutes to score. His 70th-minute shot reached the top corner, giving Liverpool the lead in a match they won 3–1.
The same competition supplied his next entry. Against West Ham on December 20, 2023, Szoboszlai opened the scoring in the 28th minute with another right-footed shot from distance. Liverpool went on to win the quarterfinal 5–1. These early cup goals changed the score while the matches were still level.
Sparta Prague’s place in the collection belongs to the away leg on March 7, 2024. In the fourth minute of added time, Szoboszlai struck right-footed from outside the area to complete a 5–1 Europa League victory. It was the fourth and final long-range goal of his first Liverpool season.
The next entry didn’t arrive until January 25, 2025. Against Ipswich, Szoboszlai received Ibrahima Konaté’s pass, moved inside onto his left foot and drove the ball low into the corner. The 11th-minute opener started a 4–1 win, adding a different finish from the same foot he’d used against Villa.
Arsenal’s visit on August 31, 2025, brought the first free kick in this sequence. Szoboszlai scored in the 83rd minute, finding the top corner from long range. It was the only goal of a 1–0 Liverpool win, arriving late enough to settle a match that had remained scoreless for more than 80 minutes.
Florian Wirtz, another of Liverpool’s midfield creators, supplied the assist for the next one. In Frankfurt on October 22, 2025, Szoboszlai finished from outside the box in the 70th minute to make it 5–1. His first Champions League entry in the collection came from open play.
The FA Cup joined the collection on January 12, 2026. Szoboszlai scored from distance after nine minutes against Barnsley, beginning a 4–1 home victory. It also began a month in which he’d score from outside the box in three different competitions.
Nine days later in Marseille, he found a route beneath the wall. His free kick stayed low as the defenders jumped, putting Liverpool ahead just before halftime in a 3–0 Champions League win. This time, keeping the ball down was the solution.
Bournemouth followed on January 24. A free-kick routine involving Mohamed Salah ended with Szoboszlai scoring in the 80th minute, bringing Liverpool level at 2–2. The finish completed his three-competition January run, but it didn’t secure a result: Bournemouth won 3–2.
Anfield staged another free kick against Manchester City on February 8, 2026. Szoboszlai’s swerving 74th-minute effort put Liverpool 1–0 ahead. City recovered to win 2–1, making this the second successive entry in the collection to come in a Liverpool defeat.
Tottenham first appeared in the sequence on March 15, 2026. Szoboszlai curled a free kick over the wall in the 18th minute, opening the scoring at Anfield. Spurs eventually drew 1–1. It was a league goal, six months before the cup strike against the same opponents.
When Tottenham returned on September 15, the outcome changed. Szoboszlai’s 13th arrived from open play in the first minute of stoppage time, taking Liverpool’s lead from 2–1 to 3–1. This long-range finish secured a place in the League Cup’s next round rather than leaving the game open.
He’s beaten walls by going over and under them, finished with both feet and scored without a settling touch. The distance connects the 13 goals. The different ways he’s covered it keep the collection from looking like the same shot on repeat.
