Xabi Alonso said his return to Anfield was bittersweet after Liverpool thrashed Bayer Leverkusen 4-0 on Tuesday, thanks to a Luis Diaz hat-trick, to go top of the Champions League table.

Liverpool turned it on in the final half an hour to see off Xabi Alonso and his Bayer Leverkusen team on the Reds legend's Anfield return. After a fairly drab first half the only real talking point was Jeremie Frimpong's correctly disallowed goal for handball, before the Reds took over in the second period.

Luis Diaz scored Liverpool’s first Champions League hat-trick at Anfield in seven years as they extended their 100 per-cent record to four matches with a 4-0 victory over Bayer Leverkusen as former midfielder Xabi Alonso endured a miserable return.