Liverpool, to the semifinals with trouble

Liverpool faces the final stretch of a season as exciting as it is difficult. The 3-3 draw against Benfica leaves Klopp’s men in the semifinals of the Champions League, where they will face a courageous Villarreal who should not be underestimated as it seems they did with Lisbon in some sections of the quarterfinals. Not even Firmino’s brace calmed the fighting spirit of the visitors, who were led by the talent of Darwin Núñez.

Klopp promised rotations in the previous one due to the wear and tear on his team after last Sunday’s duel against Manchester City, and there were. Alexander-Arnold, Van Dijk, Robertson, Fabinho, Thiago, Salah and Mané were left out of the starting eleven, in which Joe Gomez, Konaté, Tsimikas, Milner, Keita, Jota and Firmino were his substitutes. Liverpool’s usual scheme, however, remained intact: 4-3-3.

With that disposition, Liverpool came out to dominate the game and monopolized possession from the start. Klopp’s midfield armed the game with the permissiveness of Benfica, who waited crouched to stir up the game at a gallop. Thus came the first scare at Anfield after a shot from the Lisbon striker, Everton -difficult to find a better name for a Reds rival-, but his thread shot went wide.

The English team did not lose their calm and continued to amass possession until they got the first chances from set pieces. That’s where Liverpool’s 1-0 came in the 22nd minute when Konaté prevailed over everyone in the Portuguese area. The gap was already open and then the exchange of blows was unleashed: Darwin Núñez equalized, although his goal was annulled, and immediately afterwards, Luis Díaz met Vlachodimos, who avoided the second of the reds. The match had become a constant back and fortha moment that Gonzalo Ramos took advantage of to make it 1-1 for Benfica.

Liverpool’s response was immediate: Firmino left it to Díaz, who was shooting when Grimaldo snatched the goal from him. Keita also tried his luck before the break with a powerful shot from outside, which whistled past Vlachodimos’s left post. Benfica was saved from 2-1 in the first half, but in the second he did not have the same fate. Vertonghen reluctantly cleared a ball that ended up at Firmino’s feet. The Brazilian was playing a discreet game, at the height of his season, but managed to restore the difference and came up.

With the 2-1, Klopp gave free rein to his team. Fabinho, Thiago and Salah entered the scene, with half an hour to go, and Liverpool went for the win. Tsimkas hung a great ball, in another set piece action, and Firmino impaled him to make the third for the locals. The overall result of the tie was 6-2, Benfica was defeated, and not even for that, Klopp put away his cards. Mané entered the field in the 65th minute partnering with Salah. Two forwards who since the end of the Africa Cup were in low hours. Hence the German coach’s obsession with giving them minutes as if they had a sparring partner in front of them.

The decision seemed logical, but Benfica was not willing to be a sparring partner. That is why Yaremchuk and Darwin Núñez found the spaces between Liverpool’s defense and Alisson’s area and the game reached 3-3. A result that surprised the Reds so much, that they closely watched the Lisbon team’s fourth goal, but Alisson appeared to avoid disaster and give the pass to the semifinals to the English, who suffered more than necessary.