Liverpool put themselves within touching distance of a second successive Champions League semi-final with a 2-0 victory over FC Porto in their last-eight clash at Anfield.
First-half goals from Naby Keita and Roberto Firmino secured an all-important first-leg lead, and though Jurgen Klopp’s side had chances to put the tie out of sight, they will be strong favourites to set up a mouth-watering meeting with either Manchester United or Barcelona.
Klopp sprung a surprise by giving Dejan Lovren his first start since January at the heart of the defence, with James Milner deputising for the suspended Andy Robertson at left-back and Joe Gomez back in the matchday squad for the first time since his return from a broken leg.
Porto arrived with suspension issues of their own, robbed of skipper Hector Herrera and their most experienced defender in Pepe, and within five minutes the latter’s absence was keenly felt.
It was deputy full-back Milner who started the move with a sweeping pass out to Sadio Mane, who in turn fed Firmino.
Milner’s shift to the backline ensured a start for Keita in midfield, and it was the number eight who arrived onto Firmino’s typically unselfish lay-off to fire past Iker Casillas with the help of a sizeable deflection, and net his second goal for the club less than a week after his first.
Liverpool were purring, with Mohamed Salah, like Keita, looking revitalised after ending a scoring drought of his own against Southampton on Friday night. The Egyptian should have made it two, pouncing on a woeful back-pass to stride clean through on goal, only to slide past the far post.
Before half hour was on the clock, though, the Reds had their second after a wonderfully worked move, which saw Jordan Henderson again demonstrate his oft-questioned attacking capabilities with a peach of a pass inside the full-back for Trent Alexander-Arnold, who rolled across goal for Firmino to tuck home.
The warning signs were there at the other end, in particular from Moussa Marega, looking to score in a seventh successive Champions League game, and he forced a good stop from the feet of Alisson.
There was a heart-in-mouth moment for the Anfield faithful when Alisson slapped the ball onto the arm of Alexander-Arnold from close range, and given the precedent set by Uefa elsewhere this season, you feared that the harshest of spot-kicks might be inevitable. Thankfully, though not entirely consistently, common sense prevailed.
Henderson almost teed up a third on two occasions, one either side of half-time, first crossing for Firmino to blaze into the Kop and then seeing Mane find the back of the net from his ball, only for the most marginal of offside calls to deny the hosts.
With the second leg falling between two crucial games in the Premier League title run-in, you sensed the Reds saw an opportunity to get the tie sealed on the night. Salah twice saw shots at goal blocked by his own team-mates, though not quite in the fashion of Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting.
The Portuguese side had scored in every European road game this season, and surely knew the value of an away goal to take back to the Estadio do Dragao. However, as the game ticked into its final quarter of an hour, they seemed to place more emphasis on not conceding a third.
That this competition represents only part of Liverpool’s ambitions in the final weeks of this season was emphasised when Klopp took the chance to give Mane and Firmino breathers late on, and the Reds now prepare to host Chelsea at Anfield on Sunday with dreams of a historic double still alive.
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Liverpool vs FC Porto line-ups
Liverpool XI: Alisson, Alexander-Arnold, Lovren, van Dijk, Milner, Henderson, Fabinho, Keita, Salah, Firmino, Mane
Subs: Mignolet, Wijnaldum, Gomez, Sturridge, Shaqiri, Origi, Matip
FC Porto XI: Casillas, Maxi Pereira, Felipe, Eder Militao, Alex Telles, Corona, Danilo Pereira, Torres, Otavio, Marega, Tiquinho Soares
Subs: Vana, Diogo Leite, Costa, Hernani, Brahimi, Andre Pereira, Fernando
