Some video reaction:
Further reading (and watching)
Barney Ronay on a wild night in Liverpool:
Jürgen Klopp tries to make sense of it all:
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Match report: Liverpool 4-0 Barcelona (agg: 4-3)
Daniel Taylor was at Anfield for the Guardian to chronicle one of the most remarkable games in the stadium’s long history. Here’s how he saw this May miracle unfold.
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And that’s almost it folks: Having fielded a question about Manchester City’s win over Leicester City last night from his friend and mine, Raphael “Buzz-Kill” Honigstein, Jurgen Klopp leaves the assembled throng to get on with crafting their re-writes on one of the most incredible – nay, the most incredible - nights ever experienced at Anfield.
Liverpool have pulled of one of the most remarkable wins in their history to see off a Barcelona side that came to Anfield with a 3-0 first leg lead, only to be dumped out of the tournament and sent home with their tails between their legs on the back of a 4-0 drubbing in which Leo Messi could scarcely have been more anonymous. It was a truly remarkable performance from Liverpool, who will now face Ajax or Tottenham Hotspur in the Champions League final to be played in Madrid.
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And still more from Klopp: “We believed in this chance. We didn’t compare it with Istanbul or anything. We want to create our own history. I know what people say about me losing finals and that’s OK, but we’re in another one now. After last year, we said we can’t let it stand like this and now we get a chance to go back. What the boys did tonight ... this club touches you like crazy.”
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More from Klopp: “I thought we were really difficult to play tonight. I can’t really talk about Barcelona. I thought we were better than the 3-0 at Barcelona and they were probably better than the 4-0 here.” He goes on to praise Trent Alexander-Arnold’s moment of inspiration at the corner that led to the winner, saying that he turned around and saw the ball going into the net, but had no idea how if got there. He says he has since seen what Alexander-Arnold and Origi did and his reaction was “wow”.
More from Jurgen Klopp: “We tried to win the game step by step,” he says. “We had to attack with whatever we have and we had to defend with whatever we had. It was a mix of big heart and skills. We knew from the first game that if you have chances you have to score. The thing that made it really possible is that my boys are really mentality giants. The games we’ve had, the injuries we’ve had ... if you go out there and ask people if they’d have put a penny on us, I don’t think you’d have found anyone. I’m really proud, because what we did tonight was really special. I’ll never forget this for the rest of my life.”
Player ratings ...
Andy Hunter was tasked with marking the players out of 10 and like a German repeatedly saying “no”, has been throwing nines around like confetti ...
When Sunderland let a 3-0 lead slip at Derby in 1990-91 it was seen as a massive humiliation; my dad called for the reintroduction of the birch. Now Europe's elite do it pretty much every week. Game's gone.
— Jonathan Wilson (@jonawils) May 7, 2019
Corrections and clarifications
I stand corrected: Jurgen Klopp referred to his players as “absolute fucking monsters of mentality” in his post-match interview with BT Sport’s dishy pitchside reporter Des Kelly. When Des, who I’m sure wasn’t even remotely bothered by Klopp’s profanity issued the token apology, Klopp laughed and invited him to “fine me”.
You can hear more effing and jeffing from Jurgen shortly when he conducts his post-match press conference in the less genteel surroundings of the Anfield media centre. He’s due up any second.
Jurgen Klopp speaks ...
And it’s safe to say he’s a little overwhelmed and slightly stunned. “It was really ... the whole performance was too much,” he tells BT Sport. “It was overwhelming ... I actually ... I said to the boys before the game that it’s impossible, but because it’s you we have a chance. I have watched in my life so many football games, but to play the best team in the world ... look, winning is already difficult, but to win with a clean sheet ... It’s 10.10pm and the children are probably in bed so I’m sorry about the language but can I say these boys are fucking talented giants. It’s all about the players.”
He goes on to repeatedly praise his players character, singling out Gini Wijnaldum, Divock Origi, Xherdan Shaqiri and Alisson among others. Trent Alexander-Arnold also gets a mention - his contribution tonight was little short of outstanding.
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Match report: Liverpool 4-0 Barcelona (Agg: 4-3)
Daniel Taylor was at Anfield to chronicle an astonishing victory for Liverpool as they overturned a three-goal first leg deficit. Here’s his first take on a thrilling contest.
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Crikey, what a game of football. Few gave Liverpool a chance of pulling a result like that out of the bag, but they’ve only gone and done it. Divock Origi opened the scoring in the first half, to keep his side’s hopes alive. Having come on at half-time after Andy Robertson fell victim to some trademark Luis Suarez shithousery, Gini Wijnaldum scored two goals in as many minutes to restore parity. Some quick thinking from Trent Alexander-Arnold at a corner allowed Origi to score a Liverpool winner few could have foreseen before kick-off tonight. It was an incredible bit of improvisation from the two players, who caught one of the most experienced teams in world football napping and made them look like chumps.
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You’ll Never Walk Alone: It’s an extra special rendition as Liverpool’s players, substitutes and backroom staff and convene in front of the Kop for a ridiculously raucous rendition of the Liverpool anthem. All present are understandably jubilant.
Gini Wijnaldum: “It’s unbelievable,” says Liverpool’s super-sub in an interview with BT Sport. “After the game in Spain we were confident that we could score four goals at home and win 4-0. I think people outside the club didn’t think we could do it but we have shown anything is possible. I was really angry with the manager and wanted to show him what I could do.”
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Full-time: Liverpool 4-0 Barcelona (Agg: 4-3)
It’s all over! Leo Messi walks off shaking his head in what looks like a mixture of disbelief and rage, and well he might. Liverpool have achieved the unthinkable and successfully overturned a 3-0 first leg deficit and have advanced to the final of the Champions League.
90+4 min: James Milner runs to the corner with the ball at his feet and wins a free-kick. This must be it ...
90+3 min: Sergi Roberto eschews a shooting opportunity on the edge of the Liverpool penalty area, trying to pick out Leo Messi instead. Liverpool clear.
90+1 min: Jordan Henderson and Sadio Mane combine brilliantly in the Barcelona penalty area and it looks as if the striker might flick the ball goalwards. His effort takes a deflection and the ball’s headed clear as the Liverpool man is flagged for offside.
89 min: Liverpool win a free-kick and the opportunity to clear their lines that goes with it for a foul on Fabinho just outside his own penalty area. They make a substitution: Daniel Sturridge comes on for Xherdan Shaqiri. The fourth official signposts five minutes of added time.
88 min: Virgil van Dijk heads clear as Semedo pings a cross into the Liverpool penalty area.
87 min: Barcelona go in frantic search of the goal that would almost certainly win them the tie. Alexander-Arnold, who has been so heroic he might as well be wearing a mask and cape, is on hand to block a Sergi Roberto cross from the left wing.
87 min: Shaqiri goes close, only to be denied by Ter Stegen. Now Virgil van Dijk needs to receive treatment after an accidental clash of heads with Lenglet as the two players contested a high ball.
84 min: Play has yet to resume in a stadium that’s understandably rocking. Shaqiri gets a stay of substitution, as Divock Origi goes off to be replaced by Joe Gomez.
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83 min: Liverpool substitution: Xherdan Shaqiri makes way for Joe Gomez. Although there’s a brief delay before the switch is made as Origi is down injured.
That was sensational! Trent Alexander-Arnold won a corner for his team. He shaped to take it, then walked away from the ball as Xherdan Shaqiri ambled his way. As Barcelona’s players switched off, Alexander-Arnold noticed what was going on, quickly returned to the ball and quickly played a low, ridiculously accurate cross to Divock Origi who was on the same page as his team-mate and unmarked on the edge of the six-yard box. With Barcelona’s defenders dozing, he swept it past Marc-Andre ter Stegen into the back of the net.
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GOAL! Liverpool 4-0 Barcelona (Agg: 4-3)
Liverpool lead!!! Divock Origi scores his second of the night after an inspirational bit of quick thinking from Trent Alexander-Arnold down by the corner flag.
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77 min: Another duff pass from Shaqiri enables Barcelona to win the ball back in midfield. On BT Sport, Steve McManaman is on co-comms and he is increasingly worried by the high defensive line Liverpool are playing.
76 min: Excellent play from Sadio Mane, who harries Nelson Semedo in possession out on the left touchline and wins the ball from him. Following his illegal attempt to win it back, Semedo is booked for fouling the Liverpool striker.
73 min: Following that onslaught from Liverpool, Barcelona seem to have regained their composure. They make a substitution: Arturo Vidal goes off and is replaced by his (sort of) namesake, Arthur.
72 min: Joel Matip, it was, who conceded the free-kick that Messi failed to score from. The Liverpool defender was booked at the time and is now on a yellow card.
70 min: Just over 20 minutes to go, with the possibility of extra time and penalties to come. James Milner plays a ball into the Barcelona penalty area, aiming for Divock Origi, who was jogging towards the near post. The striker fails to attack the ball, which was perhaps a mite too far out of his orbit.
67 min: Barcelona take the corner short and after a couple of phases of play, Messi makes a run down the inside right channel from deep to get to a ball over the top and brings a smart save out of Alisson with a diagonal drive towards the near post. Liverpool’s defenders were asleep there - nobody tracked his run.
66 min: Barcelona win a free-kick about 35 metres from Liverpool’s goal, in almost exactly the same position from which he scored last week. He fires into the wall this time and the ball goes out for a corner off the defensive wall.
64 min: Liverpool continue to turn the screw, with Barcelona now struggling to get the ball out of their own half. This tie is on a knife-edge, but it’s advantage Liverpool at the moment, in so far as they’re dominating, they’re at home and their opponents are visibly rattled. Barcelona surrendered a three-goal first leg lead against Roma last season, a state of affairs that will almost certainly be playing on the minds of their players.
62 min: Liverpool win a free-kick for a Vidal handball wide on the right. Alexander-Arnold and Shaqiri stand over the ball. Alexander-Arnold curls the ball into the Barcelona penalty area, where Rakitic heads clear.
61 min: Barcelona make a substitution: Coutinho makes way for Nelson Semedo, just as he did around this point in the first leg.
59 min: At some point before those two minutes of mayhem, Ivan Rakitic was booked. I’d be lying if I said I could remember why, but I think it might have been for a deliberate handball.
57 min: Liverpool score two goals in 122 seconds, with Gini Wijnaldum doing the honours on both occasions. His first was a low drive, smashed past Marc-Andre ter Stegen after getting on the end of a low cross from Trent Alexander-Arnold. His second was a superb header into the top left-hand corner, as he rose unopposed to nod past Ter Stegen after James Milner had floated in a cross. Barcelona are on the ropes here and their players look utterly shell-shocked.
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GOAL! Liverpool 3-0 Barcelona (Agg: 3-3)
Incredible stuff, as Gini Wijnaldum scores his second in two minutes to make it all square.
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GOAL! Liverpool 2-0 Barcelona (Agg: 2-3)
Liverpool score again, with Gini Wijnaldum getting on the scoresheet.
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53 min: Now it’s Alisson’s turns to impress. He gets down low to get a strong hand out and prevent Luis Suarez from scoring with a low drive.
52 min: Oof!!! From the corner, the ball’s sweeps low across the Barcelona penalty area and Virgil van Dijk almost scores with a back-heel that is superbly saved by Marc-Andre Ter Stegen.
50 min: Sergi Roberto does well to chase back and prevent Mane from getting to a long pass from deep. For once, this evening, the Liverpool striker manages to stay on his feet in the Barcelona penalty area, but the Barcelona defender puts the bouncing ball out for a corner.
48 min: Milner and Fabinho combine down the left flank, but Barcelona win a free-kick and the opportunity to clear their lines when Divock Origi needlessly fouls Sergi Roberto.
47 min: Liverpool win a corner and Xherdan Shaqiri’s out-swinging delivery is poor. There are few better headers of a ball than Virgil van Dijk in the Premier League, but none of Liverpool’s corners are finding their way to him.
Second-half: Liverpool 1-0 Barcelona (Agg: 1-3)
46 min: Liverpool get the second half started, with Andy Robertson having succumbed to the injury he sustained after being kicked off the ball by Luis Suarez, who escaped punishment for the offence. Gini Wijnaldum replaces the Scot, James Milner moves to left-back and the substitute takes a midfield berth.
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Meanwhile in Amsterdam: Mauricio Pochettino has been talking ahead of Tottenham’s semi-final second leg against Ajax. His team go into tomorrow night’s game trailing 1-0 from the first leg at White Hart Line.
Half-time: Liverpool 1-0 Barcelona (Agg: 1-3)
The referee blows for the break and Liverpool can be very content with their work so far tonight. They’ve scored through Divock Origi, kept a clean sheet and ridden their luck just a little. A lot done, plenty more to do. Crucially, Leo Messi has been very quiet tonight, but then ... he was fairly quiet for the first half of last week’s first leg too. Liverpool can’t afford to take their eyes off him for a second.
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45+4 min: Liverpool win a corner, from which Barcelona embark on yet another breakaway. The ball’s played to Jordi Alba, who is unable to unleash a shot due to Alisson’s promptness in dashing off his line.
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45+1 min: Messi drills a low, hard shot from distance a foot or so wide of the upright after Xherdan Shaqiri had sloppily given the ball away with a loose pass in midfield.
44 min: There’ll be four minutes of additional time at the end of this first half. In the meantime, Barcelona midfielder Sergio Busquets is booked for catching Fabinho with his shoulder as the pair leapt to contest a high ball. Well, Fabinho leapt to contest the ball, Busquets leapt to contest Fabinho.
43 min: Liverpool win a corner after Vidal blocks a shot from distance a few yards outside his own penalty area. Nothing comes of it.
42 min: Marc-Andre ter sTegen is quick off his line and out of his penalty area to clear a through ball towards Xherdan Shaqriri. Moments later, Gerard Pique makes a crucial intervention to prevent Sadio Mane getting on the end of a ball in over the top of the Barcelona defence.
41 min: The Liverpool physio gives a thumbs-up to the bench, signalling that Robertson is OK to continue. Play resumes.
40 min: Andy Robertson goes to ground to receive treatment. He appears to have sustained it after receiving a little backwards kick off the ball from Luis Suarez.
38 min: In better news for Liverpool, Jordan Henderson appears to be showing no ill effects from his injury, which he appears to have run off.
36 min: Correct decision. Replays show Mane simply fell over while trying to squeeze past Clement Lenglet to latch on to Milner’s through ball. Milner is now rubbing his chops after shipping a stray (and accidental) arm from Arturo Vidal in the face. Elsewhere on the pitch, Liverpool left-back Andy Robertson is limping.
34 min: Liverpool attack on the break, with James Milner on the ball. He tries to play Sadio Mane into space, but his team-mate goes down on the edge of the penalty area. Liverpool fans appeal for a free-kick, but none is forthcoming.
33 min: Interesting. Henderson hobbles to the sideline and then jogs back into action. He’s fit to continue for the time being at least.
32 min: Gini Wijnaldum prepares to come on, while Henderson receives treatment out on the pitch.
31 min: A worrying sight for Liverpool fans. Jordan Henderson is lying on the ground on the edge of his own penalty area, clutching his knee after a collision with Lenglet. This doesn’t look great for the Liverpool skipper.
29 min: Clement Lenglet and Jordi Alba go down hurt after colliding with each other. The duo receive treatment and are fit to continue.
28 min: Andy Robertson puts the ball out for a corner. Barcelona take it short and play the ball across the field towards Suarez at the far post. Offside.
27 min: Young Trent is on hand again to intercept a pass from Arturo Vidal to Luis Suarez, who is being relentlessly jeered by the Anfield faithful.
26 min: Barcelona try to play Jordi Alba in behind down the left flank, but Trent Alexander-Arnold is wise to their plan and intercepts the pass from deep with a header.
24 min: Luis Suarez takes a tumble after losing a tussle for the ball with Virgil van Dijk. He brandishes an imaginary card (not sure what colour) and the crowd make their displeasure with their former hero known in no uncertain terms, using fruity language that has no place in a pre-watershed, family minute-by-minute report.
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23 min: Andy Robertson brings a smart save out of Marc-Andre ter Stegen from the left side of the penalty area, following up after an attempted Sadio Mane cross had been blocked. Close, but no cigar.
21 min: There’s a VAR check for a potential red card offence - a Henderson tackle on Sergi Roberto. The referee awards a free-kick, but takes no further action and correctly so.
18 min: Suarez, Messi and Coutinho get in behind and find themselves in a three-on-two. Coutinho, it is, who unleashes the shot against his former club. Alisson saves well and manages to push the ball out of Suarez’s reach. After a splendid start, Liverpool are pushing their luck a little here.
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16 min: Jordi Alba is played in behind the Liverpool defence, the flag stays down and with the goal at his mercy, he chooses to pass to Leo Messi instead of shooting. Joel Matip intervenes to clear the danger for Liverpool. Barcelona should have scored there.
14 min: A good save from Alisson, who tips a rising shot from Leo Messi over the bar after the Barcelona striker had got on the end of a pull-back from the byline to unleash a surface-to-air screamer from just inside the Liverpool penalty area. Nothing comes of the corner.
13 min: Back to Liverpool’s goal, which originated with a crossfield pass from Robertson. Jordi Alba completely misjudged his header, allowing Sadio Mane to steer the ball towards the feet of Henderson in the Barcelona penalty area. He took his shot, Ter Stegen saved and Origi’s task could not have been simpler.
11 min: Fabinho gets booked for a fairly brutal but fair tackle on Luis Suarez. Moments earlier, Sadio Mane had gone down under a challenge from Sergi Roberto in the Barcelona penalty area, prompting demands for a penalty. None is forthcoming.
9 min: Well, that’s just the start Liverpool wanted. A mistake by Jordi Alba enabled Liverpool to get the ball into the penalty area from the right flank, where Jordan Henderson took possession. He beat a defender and shot low and hard, bringing a good save out of Ter Stegen. The Barcelona goalkeeper couldn’t prevent the ball from rebounding to the feet of Divock Origi, who had the simple task of slotting into an empty net.
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GOAL! Liverpool 1-0 Barcelona (Agg: 1-3)
Liverpool go one up on the night! Divock Origi scores on the follow up from four or five yards out after Ter Stegen had saved a Jordan Henderson effort.
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6 min: Trent Alexander-Arnold takes the corner, sending the ball to the near post, where Fabinho is unable to get the flick on.
5 min: In the Liverpool goal, Alisson gets his first touch and throws the ball out to Andy Robertson on the left touchline. He plays it down the line to Sadio Mane, who wins another corner for Liverpool off Arturo Vidal.
4 min: Barcelona goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen hoofs the ball down the field under pressure from Divock Origi, who presses him hard.
2 min: Sadio Mane finds himself in space on the left flank and rolls the ball towards Xherdan Shaqiri. With an eye on goal, he fails to make clean contact with the ball, which deflects in the general direction of Jordan Henderson. Jordi Alba gets an interception and the ball’s put out for a corner. It’s not taken until the referee has a word with Leo Messi and Andy Robertson, who are arguing over something or other. When the ball’s eventually floated into the penalty area, Luis Suarez clears.
Liverpool v Barcelona is go!
1 min: Luis Suarez gets the ball rolling, his side seeking to avoid becoming the first ever team to have a three-goal Champions League semi-final first leg lead over-turned.
Liverpool line up in their customary home colours of red shirts, red shorts and socks. Barcelona’s player’s wear fluorescent yellow shirts, shorts and socks, looking a little like highlighter pens.
Not long now: While the teams line up in the tunnel, the Anfield crowd give a stirring rendition of the closing number from the Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Carousel. Jordan Henderson leads out Liverpool, while Leo Messi wears the captain’s armband for Barcelona.
Jurgen Klopp speaks ...
“We start with 11 players and that’s good,” he tells BT Sport. “That’s how it is. We are here, we are qualified and we really want to give it a try. We hope that’s what people will see.”
On the subject of whether Xherdan Shaqiri will be on the left of a front three or in behind: “Shaq will be more in the half-spaces,” he says. “We have to be free, fluent, come in the spaces and come in behind. With Shaq we want creativity, good crosses and good set-pieces. It’s not just about him and [Divock Origi], all the boys have to deliver.”
As well as they played in defeat in the first leg, Liverpool’s set-pieces and crossing were little short of atrocious. They’ll need to do a lot better tonight.
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Luis Suarez: In an interview with BT Sport, the former Liverpool striker explains that when his wife and children heard Barcelona would be playing his old team in the semi-final, they insisted on going to Anfield for the second leg. “They love Liverpool,” he says. “They love Anfield and they love the people.”
Tactics corner, with Harry Day-Brosnan: “Shaqiri as part of a front three,” he says. “I can’t see him changing the system in such a big game. Surely their whole pressing game, (who presses where and when) is predicated on having a front three?”
Xherdan Shaqiri: Will he play as part of a front three or as the tip of a midfield diamond behind a front two of Sadio Mane and Divock Origi? More to the point, do you care? These and other questions will be answered in a little over half an hour.
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A mail from Matt Richmann: “Not that I am at all bitter or ever one to harbor misgivings against a match official,” he writes, clearly being bitter and harbouring misgivings over against a match official. “But Cuneyt Cakir also sent off Nani with a straight red in the second leg of the 2013 Champions League tie between Real and Manchester United. Fergie refused to attend the subsequent press conference and some wean dialed 999 to report a robbery at Old Trafford. But who remembers these things anyway?”
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Liverpool v Barcelona line-ups
Liverpool: Alisson, Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Van Dijk, Robertson, Henderson, Fabinho, Milner, Shaqiri, Mane, Origi.
Subs: Mignolet, Wijnaldum, Lovren, Gomez, Sturridge, Brewster, Woodburn.
Barcelona: ter Stegen, Sergi Roberto, Pique, Lenglet, Alba, Vidal, Sergio Busquets, Rakitic, Messi, Suarez,Coutinho.
Subs: Cillessen, Nelson Semedo, Arthur, Malcom, Umtiti, Vermaelen, Alena.
Referee: Cuneyt Cakir (Turkey)
Barcelona team news: Move along, nothing to see here. Valverde fields the same starting XI that triumphed at the Camp Nou last Wednesday.
The first (weird) accusation of bias: To the email inbox, where somebody appears to have firmly grabbed the wrong end of the stick with both hands, before waving it about. “Well, your introduction to Çakır is really interesting,” writes Önder. “John Terry kneeing an opponent was hardly daft. While you were at it, why didn’t you mention Nani’s sending off by Çakır? I bet you think that was a fair challenge, eh?”
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Liverpool team news
Xherdan Shaqiri gets a rare start in Liverpool’s front three along with Divock Origi, the pair lining up either side of Sadio Mane. Jordan Henderson and James Milner start in midfield and will line up to the right and left of Fabinho. Joel Matip gets the nod in the heart of Liverpool’s defence ahead of Dejan Lovren and will play alongside Virgil van Dijk. We’ll have the full line-ups for you shortly.
Tonight’s referee: Cuneyt Cakır, the 42-year-old match official from Turkey, is in charge of maintaining order during tonight’s game. Cakir reffed this season’s thrilling quarter-final second leg between Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City and was also in charge of England’s World Cup semi-final against Croatia at the World Cup last summer.
Chelsea fans may remember that it was he who famously held aloft the red card that meant Chelsea’s John Terry missed the 2012 Champions League final for a daft foul on Alexis Sanchez in their semi-final against Barcelona. Conspiracy theorists desperately seeking evidence of anti-English bias on Cakir’s part may be interested to know that he has also, in the past, dismissed Steven Gerrard and Gary Cahill.
Some pre-match listening ...
Guardian Football Weekly podcast: Max Rushden chaired proceedings as Mark Langdon, Archie Rhind-Tutt and the man recently described as the Night King of the Tactics Nerds, Jonathan Wilson picked over the bones of the weekend action and looked ahead to this week’s European action. If you’re not already a subscriber, you can listen here and then download in all the usual pod places.
Ernesto Valverde speaks
“Despite what happened in the first game, we have to think what will happen here,” said Barcelona’s manager, when he faced the ladies and gentlemen of the Fourth Estate. “If we think about the result we had last week it would be an error. We have to play it as if it was a final. It’s going to be difficult because we know the fans will be getting behind their side.”
Asked how he would approach the game with his side three up from the first leg, Valverde explained that he wants his players to control the game. “It’s always important to bring the game on your side,” he said. “They have fast players. Sometimes you are put in situations that are uncomfortable. We want to have the feeling that we’re in control. They’re going to attack us. There’s no doubt about that.”
Jurgen Klopp speaks ...
Possibly in between prayers to St Jude, the patron saint of desperate cases and lost causes, Liverpool’s manager took time out to chat to the media yesterday and was reasonably upbeat. “We know how big the challenge is,” he said. “We will try 100% but that does not mean it will work out. If we can do it, wonderful – and if not, let’s fail in the most beautiful way. We have to be ready for 95 or even more minutes to try, step by step. We have to be really good at defending and we have to be really creative offensively – powerful and direct.”
Early team news ...
Despite being “desperate” to play, Mo Salah has been stood down for six days after suffering a concussion in Liverpool’s match against Newcastle, while Roberto Firmino is also out. Naby Keita has also played his last game of the season after doing his groin a mischief in the first leg of this tie. Adam Lallana is also unlikely to play again this season; the midfielder remains sidelined with an ankle injury.
With the Spanish title already wrapped up, Ernesto Valverde was able to rest all eleven players that started against Liverpool for Barcelona’s defeat at the hands of Celta Vigo over the weekend. Ousmane Dembele, who came on as a substitute and missed a gilt-edged chance to put Barcelona 4-0 up with the final kick of the first leg, has not made the trip to Liverpool after picking up an injury against Celta, while long-term absentee Rafinha remains out with a knee injury, but has travelled with the group nonetheless as Valverde wants him to feel included.
Champions League semi-final: Liverpool v Barcelona (first leg: 0-3)
Liverpool host Barcelona for the second leg of their Champions League semi-final with quite the Everest to climb. Trailing 3-0 from the first leg, a scoreline that is hardly a fair reflection of their performance at the Camp Nou, the chances of Jürgen Klopp’s side overturning the deficit have been further hamstrung by injuries to two prongs of his first choice attacking trident. Mo Salah is absent after suffering a head injury against Newcastle, while Roberto Firmino remains sidelined by the soft tissue injury he exacerbated when coming on as a late substitute in last week’s first leg.
“If we can do it, wonderful,” said Klopp, when asked to weigh up his team’s chances of advancing to the final. “If not, then fail in the most beautiful way.” Kick-off is at 8pm (BST), but stay tuned for team news and build-up in the meantime.
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