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Hugo Ekitike gestured the scoreline to Newcastle United fans after scoring twice in the victory for Liverpool on Saturday night. The France international got a quickfire brace in the first half to help the Reds claim a 4-1 win in the top-flight match at Anfield.

Ekitike signed for Liverpool from Eintracht Frankfurt last summer in a deal worth up to £79million, and scored his 14th and 15th goals of the season in the win over Newcastle.

The France international was heavily linked with a move to St James’ Park before moving to Anfield instead, and played a key role in the win for Liverpool on Merseyside.

Ekitikescored twice in the victory, with Florian Wirtz and Ibrahima Konate also on the score sheet, as Liverpool moved up to fifth place in the table.

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Ekitike was substituted in the 84th minute of the game, and could be seen on the touchline showing a ‘3-1’ hand gesture to the Newcastle fans to reflect the score line at the time.

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A few seconds later, Ekitike could be seen celebrating in front of the Liverpool fans as he made his way back to the bench.

Liverpool’s clash against Newcastle led to Ekitike being quizzed about how close he came to moving to Tyneside rather than Merseyside in the summer, with the 23-year-old already giving an emphatic response to the summer speculation.

“Yeah, obviously, we were close [to joining Newcastle],” Ekitike said after Liverpool’s win over Qarabag in the Champions League earlier in the week.

“I don't care. I play for Liverpool, I don't care about this, I just want to play and help the team. It is simple.

“Obviously, we were close [to signing for Newcastle], but I made my choice. I knew where I wanted to come, so that's all I can give to you.

“Liverpool fans' support means a lot. I play for the fans; they give me so much energy."

Steven Gerrard was quick to praise Ekitike after the striker found the back of the net for a second time for Liverpool against Newcastle.

The Reds legend explained why Ekitike’s performance reminded him of his former Anfield teammate, Fernando Torres.

“This is all about Ekitike. It's Torres-like, he just gets it out of his feet,” Gerrard said on TNT Sports while analysing Ekitike’s second goal for Liverpool.

“He reminds me of Torres this player, every time I watch him. He's scoring similar types of goals where if you give him space in the channel, he'll run it.

“He's too quick, you can't catch him and he is deadly.”

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